


Bittersweet Symphony

by southsidepea



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Sexual Harrassment, slowburn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-07
Updated: 2018-03-09
Packaged: 2019-03-15 00:46:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 23,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13601979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/southsidepea/pseuds/southsidepea
Summary: When most people from Lexington hear the name Natalie, they think about The Natalie Caves. One of the smartest (and richest) sophomores in the neighbourhood. Head cheerleader at their school. The definition of an American Sweetheart. But that’s not Natalie. Natalie is someone different and can only be seen when she’s staying with her uncle for the summer. Even then she doesn’t make a full appearance, or at least not until the day she meets the tall and mysterious SP. When it’s time for them to say their goodbyes at the end of the summer, Natalie realizes she’s grown more attached to him than she ever intended, devastated by the fact that she might never see him again…Or so she thought.





	1. Curiosity

Natalie was the daughter of Richard and Scarlet Caves, one of the richest and most successful couple in Boston. Head cheerleader and a straight-A student at the best private school in the area, Natalie Caves was the definition of an American Sweetheart. Even though Natalie’s life was seemingly perfect, with every year, she felt less like herself and more like a product her parents owned. She was expected to finish high school on the top of her class and get a scholarship to attend an ivy league school after graduation. But that wasn’t Natalie, and it wasn’t her dream. Of course she wants to have good grades, get a scholarship and be accepted into a good school. It was the fact that she felt like everything she was doing, she wasn’t doing for herself, but for her parents and her ‘image’. Natalie wanted to be able to have fun, hang out with her friends, or even just sit in her room and scroll through instagram for hours, without feeling like she was letting everyone around her down.

It started a year ago when her parents had decided to go on a cruise for a month, leaving Natalie in Pittsburgh with her uncle’s family. Her cousins, Matt and Lucy, were two years older than her and even though Natalie had never been close with them, it only took the trio a few days to become inseparable. That summer Natalie spent every day not worrying about anything else but herself. It scared her when she realised how drained she was from the constant pressure on her to be perfect and the stress that came with it. Feeling as if she had little to say about her own life.

Matt and Lucy were the main reason Natalie fell in love with music. That summer, they had dragged her with them to a gig in town. Some local rock band was playing and there had probably not been more than thirty people at the venue. She remembered the rush of adrenaline that flowed through her when the music started. It wasn’t like what she felt when she was with the cheerleading team, it was like something was filling the empty hole she never knew existed.

Natalie was devastated when the end of the summer came and she had to return back to Boston. Back to the pressure of being perfect. Back to being Natalie Caves, perfect daughter. The one thing she hated most about going back, was not being able to go to gigs and concerts. First of all, her parents would never allow her to, and second of all, everyone she knew would rather go to a fancy club and get wasted. One girl’s parents owned the biggest cocktail club in Lexington, so from age fifteen, that’s where they went every weekend. Natalie was used to living the perfect rich life, but when finally summer came, she couldn’t wait to go back to stay with her uncle.

“What time is the gig tonight?” Natalie asked the twins, who were both lying on the couch, scrolling through their phones.

“House opens at seven, first band is up at eight.” Matt mumbled, not looking up from his phone.

Natalie stood up to grab her jacket and purse, “I’m gonna go get a coffee, you guys wanna join?”. When there was no answer, she let out a sigh and headed out the door.

Natalie had arrived in Pittsburgh a week ago. The first thing she’d done was practically beg Matt and Lucy to bring her to a gig, which they gladly did. The trio spent most of the time together but whenever the twins were either working or too lazy to go outside, Natalie usually found herself walking down the street to the local coffee shop. When she arrived, she greeted the old lady behind the counter, ordered her usual latte and sat down at her regular table next to the counter. She put in her headphones and opened her notebook to start writing.

For some reason she couldn’t recall, she liked to write down her thoughts and feelings. She rarely read anything she wrote afterwards, but she somehow felt relieved after writing it down. Natalie kept most things to herself when it came to feelings. It’s not that she didn’t have people she could talk to but she didn’t like the feeling of being a burden to others.

When it was almost 5 o’clock, she grabbed her things and returned the coffee cup to the counter. When she turned around, she noticed a boy sitting at a table near the door. Natalie recognized most of the people that came in here, so every time she saw an unfamiliar face, she was curious. He was leaning over the table, his right hand running through his onyx hair while the other was flipping a page of the book he was reading. She studied his features, noticing the dog tags he had around his neck, a glimpse of a snake tattoo appearing under the collar of his leather jacket.

His head lifted slightly from his book and his dark brown eyes landed on hers. She realized she had been staring longer than she intended and started making her way to the door. The boy’s eyes did not leave hers, the corners of his mouth curling up in a smirk. Natalie felt the heat rushing to her cheeks and gave him a sheepish smile before disappearing out the door.

She hurried her way back to the house and opened the door. Matt and Lucy were in the same positions she’d left them in on the couch. “Are we ordering pizza?” Natalie asked them and got a lazy nod from them in return. She rolled her eyes before making her way upstairs to take a shower to get ready for the gig.

She let her brown hair fall down to her chest, deciding to leave it straight instead of curling it like she usually did. She went to her closet and found an oversized black t-shirt and dark blue skinny jeans. She turned to the mirror, putting on minimal eye makeup and a dark red lipstick.

“Nat! Pizza’s here!” she heard Lucy yell from downstairs and took one last look in the mirror before hurrying down the stairs to join her cousins.

They arrived at the venue a little before 8 pm. The place was more crowded than usual and the first band was already on the stage getting ready. She followed the twins towards a group of people that she’d met a few times before. She wasn’t in the mood for socializing so she leaned against the wall and waited for the band to start playing. Her eyes scanned the room, studying all the new faces and froze when she spotted the same boy from the coffee house earlier that day.

He was standing on the other side of the room, towering over the rest of the crowd. His arms were crossed over his chest while he was talking to an older man, who Natalie guessed must have been his father. Even though Natalie was 5’6’’, the boy was still almost a head taller than her. There was something about him that intrigued her. He was dark and mysterious but at the same time he looked sweet and kind. His head turned in her direction and once again their eyes met. His face lit up and a huge grin appeared on his face. He had the sweetest smile, she thought, blushing as she smiled back at him.

“Who’s that?” she felt Lucy lean closer and pinched her arm.

“I have no idea, I saw him earlier today at the coffee shop.” Natalie muttered, still smiling as she reluctantly turned her head towards her cousin, breaking the eye contact.

“Well, he’s pretty cute, and  _tall_.” Lucy teased and Natalie scoffed before turning her attention to the band that had started playing.

* * *

A few days after the gig, Natalie decided to go to the coffee shop since Matt and Lucy both had to work. The first thing she noticed when she entered the café was the tall, dark boy with the snake tattoo, sitting at her regular table next to the counter. She swallowed and walked up to the register, ordering a latte. She felt his eyes on her and she turned to meet his gaze. He closed the book in front of him and leaned back in his chair, smirking.

“Hi.” Natalie managed to say, awfully aware of her blushing. He just kept smiling at her. His teeth ran over his bottom lip as his eyes studied her every feature, sending shivers down her spine. When she got no response, she quickly turned and started tapping her fingers nervously on the counter, waiting for her coffee. Why was she acting like this? She was usually very confident when it came to people she didn’t know but there was something about how he looked at her that made her breath hitch. After what felt like an hour, the lady finally handed her the coffee which she picked up and looked around to find a table. The boy was still looking at her, smiling, and pushed the chair in front of him from the table, inviting her to sit down.

“Did you like the band?” he asked, his voice low but friendly. Natalie hesitated a bit before sitting down across from him.

“They’re one of my favorites,” she smiled and took a sip of her coffee. “What did you think?”

“I thought they were great.”

There was a moment of silence before Natalie reached out her hand, “I’m Natalie Caves.”

“I’m SP.” he shook her hand, a wave of electricity went through her as their hands touched. She felt her cheeks heating up again and quickly pulled her hand back to take another sip of her coffee, hoping he wouldn’t notice.

At first, Natalie’s body was tense and she didn’t know how to act around this stranger. They started with some basic small talk but the more they talked, the more relaxed she felt. They talked about their favorite music and which books they liked to read. She told him how she stayed with her cousins each summer and how close they were, he told her that he was visiting his father and that he was leaving in two weeks. Two hours and three more coffees later, Natalie heard her stomach growl.

“Hey, wanna go grab something to eat?” she asked, taking herself by surprise. She had only just met him, but she felt like she could trust him.

His eyes lit up and he smiled, “Yes, please. I’m starving.”

Natalie led them to the park where her favorite food truck was usually parked. It was a cloudy day, but it was still bright enough outside and it was warm enough to skip a jacket.

“They have the best sandwiches in town, I promise.” Natalie gushed as she ordered.

“I trust you,” SP chuckled. “I’ll have the same, please.” he told the man, turning to Natalie who was picking up her purse to find some cash. He furrowed his brow as she handed the man enough cash to pay for both of them and started opening his mouth to object. Natalie quickly put a finger over his lips and chuckled.

“Don’t worry about it, you’ll get it next time, okay?”

She turned around and sat down on a bench closeby. He followed and sat down right next to her, making her shiver when their knees touched slightly. They sat in silence, finishing their sandwiches. Natalie peeked at him and saw him looking at the ground, a soft smile on his face.

“So, what’s up with that snake tattoo?” Natalie asked him, reaching out to his jacket so she could have a better look at it.

SP glared at her cautiously, like he was expecting some kind of judgement from her. When he only saw the genuine expression of curiosity, he smiled and let out a sigh. “Just some stupid decision I made, you don’t wanna know.”

“I’ve made some stupid decisions myself, I bet yours wasn’t even that bad.” she snorted, punching his arm gently. SP didn’t say anything and smirked, which made Natalie even more curious. “What? Are you like, in a gang or something?” she mocked, suddenly standing up. SP furrowed his brows, confused, as she started walking away.

“Hey! You coming or not?” she turned around, laughing at his confusion before he quickly followed after her.

They walked around the park for a while before sitting down by a small pond. Natalie found it strangely comfortable to be around him. When neither of them had anything to say, there was no pressure to break the silence. If they had something to say, the conversation didn’t feel forced. It felt  _right_ , like somehow they were meant to find each other.

“Do you visit your father often?” Natalie asked as she was picking up tiny stones and throwing them into the pond.

SP opened his mouth and paused, as if to figure out how to respond. “This is actually the first time in four years I’ve seen him.”

Natalie’s head shot towards him in surprise. His face was blank, his eyes refusing to meet hers. She placed her hand on his arm and gently squeezed, wondering if he would continue or keep silent. To her surprise, SP let out a sigh and lifted his hand to curl his fingers around hers.

“My parents were constantly fighting when I was young, and one day he just left. I hadn’t heard from him since then but my mom decided I should go visit him this summer.” he sighed, “He wants to make things better, I guess. I’m still deciding if it’s worth it.”

Natalie opened her mouth to say something but had no idea how to respond to him suddenly opening up to her. Instead of comforting words, she shifted her body closer to him and wrapped her arms around him. After a few minutes of silence, Natalie picked up her phone to check the time when she saw five unread messages and ten missed calls from her uncle. She quickly stood up and SP followed, confused.

“Oh shit, I have to get home. My uncle’s been trying to reach me.” she said hastily, turning around to face him.

“Yeah that’s alright, I, uhm, guess I’ll see you around?” he mumbled. He was running his hand through his hair, awkwardly shifting his body from left to right like he wasn’t sure what to do.

Without thinking, Natalie took a step forward and threw her arms around his torso. His body tensed in surprise, but she felt it relax as he wrapped his hands around her, pulling her in closer. She felt one hand travel up her back and gently stroke her hair. They stood there for what seemed like eternity. Finally, she felt his arms loosen the grip and he pulled away slightly.

Natalie lifted her head up and was instantly met with his brown hues staring down at her. There was a hint of fondness in his eyes and a smile broke out on his face. Her eyes flickered down to his lips and for a moment, she wanted nothing more than to lean up and kiss him. He moved his face slightly closer to hers before stopping himself, stroking her cheek with his thumb.

“I’m glad I ran into you, Natalie Caves.” he said as he let go of her and turned around to walk away. Natalie stood there, frozen as she watched him disappear through the trees.

“Me too, SP.”


	2. Complication

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Why did you have to make things more complicated?” she whispered.
> 
> “I couldn’t leave without doing that at least once.” he sighed.

The next day, Natalie woke up later than usual. After she got home, she couldn’t stop thinking about SP and the day before. They’d spent a few hours together and opened up to each other, but she had no idea when or if she’d see him again. She didn’t know where he lived, or where he was staying with his dad. Hell, she didn’t even know his real name. She picked up her phone and saw it was 11 am, sighing as she stood up to put on some clothes. It was sunny outside so she picked out a white crop top with some denim shorts. She looked in the mirror and washed her face before putting her hair in a messy bun. **  
**

When she came downstairs, she found a note on the kitchen counter, telling her the twins had to take an extra shift today and didn’t want to wake her. She was supposed to go shopping with Lucy but now that was out the window. She could go by herself, but she was looking forward to spending time with her cousin. When she opened the fridge to grab something to eat, it was almost empty. She groaned and grabbed her bag, making her way to the coffee shop since they offered light snacks. Her mind wandered to SP as she walked down the street, a part of her hoping to run into him.

“Jesus, pull yourself together.” she muttered to herself as she opened the door to the café. She headed straight to the counter and ordered her usual latte and a croissant.

“Are you stalking me or something?” she heard a low voice behind her. She turned around in shock and relaxed as she saw SP standing behind her, grinning.

“I should ask you the same question,” she smirked, turning back to the counter to get her order. They sat down at the table next to the counter and Natalie felt SP’s eyes on her, watching her every movement as she picked up her notebook from her bag. “So what are you doing here?” she asked, desperately trying to stop herself from blushing under his gaze.

SP shifted awkwardly in his seat, looking down at his hands. “I, uhm, I was hoping you’d be here.” he confessed.

“I’m glad I was.” she smiled. He looked up so their eyes met, a grin appearing on his face.

They sat there for hours, Natalie writing in her notebook and SP reading his book. They talked when they felt like it, but mostly they just enjoyed each others presence. When Natalie had to go home for dinner, SP pulled her in a tight hug.

“See you around, Bubbles.” he smiled and turned around to leave.

Natalie furrowed her brows at the sudden nickname, “Bubbles? Where did that come from?”

SP looked over his shoulder and grinned. “I dunno, it fits you.”

Natalie scoffed and put her hand on her chest in an offended gesture, but couldn’t help smiling at him. SP let out a chuckle and winked, before turning back around. Still smiling, Natalie headed home. Her thoughts raced as she was walking. It had been a long time she had a friend where she could completely be herself around. Even when it came to her cousins, a part of her was always the other Natalie. SP was the exact opposite of her friends back in Boston. He didn’t have any expectations for who she was or how she acted. He laughed at her jokes and was genuinely curious about what she liked and what she disliked. He treated her like no one else treated her. Like a normal human being.

This became an everyday thing. Around lunch, Natalie made her way to the café, finding SP already sitting by their regular table, a freshly made latte and a croissant lying on a plate on her side of the table. It was funny that they never exchanged phone numbers. Maybe it was because they were both leaving, or maybe there just wasn’t any need for it. Some days they stayed at the coffee shop, talking, reading or writing. Other days they went to the park for a walk and a few times they decided to head into town. Natalie made sure to show him her favorite record store and SP dragged her into every book store they passed. Whenever the other couldn’t meet up the next day, they would still go to the coffee shop and leave a note for the other to let them know.

It was two weeks after she’d met SP and they’d grown close during that time. Natalie was having lunch with her cousins for the first time in a while, since she usually met up with SP at the café for lunch. Yesterday, he told her he couldn’t meet her until 4 pm. He was leaving the next day and even though Natalie understood he had to spend some time with his dad, she was still upset. It was kind of ridiculous how upset she was with him leaving. She had known the whole time that he was going to leave, and even though he wasn’t, she would be the one leaving anyway.

“What’s up with you?” she heard Matt ask her, pulling her out of her daze.

“Me? Oh, uhm, nothing.” she muttered, picking at the food on her plate.

“She’s got a crush on a boy and he’s leaving,” Lucy pointed out, earning a deathly glare from Natalie.

“Awwww, that’s adorable!” Matt teased, shooting Lucy a knowing look. “Summer loving, had me a blast!”

“Summer loving, happened so fast!” Lucy joined him.

“Really?” Natalie groaned as they kept singing Summer Nights from Grease, standing up from the table.

“Come on! We’re just teasing,” she heard them shouting as she closed the door to her room behind her.

She still had two hour before she was supposed to meet SP at the park. She stepped into the shower and relaxed when the warm water flowed over her skin. She must have stood there for half an hour, trying to make sense of her feelings. Was it  _normal_ to feel this sad about someone you’ve only known for two weeks? In that short time, Natalie felt more like herself than ever before. SP brought out a side of her that she had been trying to find for a while now. She sighed and picked up a shampoo bottle to rub in her hair.

Was Lucy right? Did she have a crush on him? Natalie remembered the first day they’d spent together, and how he made her feel when he looked at her. How he started leaning closer to her before stopping himself. After that night, nothing indicated that there was anything other than friendship. They hung out, they talked and laughed, but nothing more. Or was she just pushing aside what was right in front of her because it would make everything more complicated?

Natalie groaned and rinsed the shampoo out of her hair before stepping out of the shower. She decided to curl her hair and put on her favorite top and skirt. She looked in the mirror, contemplating whether she should put on some makeup before fixing her eyebrows and applying a thin layer of mascara. She impatiently unlocked her phone every three minutes to check the time, and finally headed out when it was 3:40 pm.

When she arrived in the park, she made her way to the pond. The same spot SP had told her about his father. She dropped her bag and looked around the park before sitting down. It wasn’t until five minutes later, she noticed SP approaching her. His face lit up when their eyes met and Natalie forced a smile to hide the dull pain she felt in her chest. She got on her feet and walked towards him before pulling him in a hug. He must’ve noticed something was wrong as he pulled back slightly and looked at her, concerned.

“So! What do you want to do?” she asked him, turning around to avoid eye contact.

“Hey,” SP pursed his lips and reached for her hand as she started to walk away, forcing her to look at him. “Is everything okay?”

Natalie felt a lump forming in her throat and swallowed.  _Get over yourself._  “Yeah, yeah. Sorry, just thinking about how it will suck when I go back home.” she lied. SP seemed unconvinced, but stayed silent and gave her hand a squeeze.

“Come on, I wanna show you something.” SP gently pulled her hand and turned around. Natalie furrowed her brow in confusion, but followed after him. He lead her through some trees and onto a street she didn’t recognize. Across the street was a small pub and Natalie noticed a sign out front saying ‘Live Jazz - Every day from 5-8’. SP stood next to her with a huge grin on his face, looking at her eagerly to see her reaction.

“Oh my god! How did I never know this place existed?” she gasped, and threw her arms around SP in excitement. He laughed and she felt his arms tighten around her. Natalie turned her head up, her mouth curled up in a smile.

“What are you waiting for Bubbles, let’s go!” he chuckled as he loosened his arms around her.

They entered the pub and saw a small stage in the corner, surrounded by a tables and chairs. There was one empty table at the front, so Natalie rushed towards it to sit down. The jazz band was getting ready so she figured they would start soon. SP came a minute later with two sodas and a basket of nachos. When the band started playing, Natalie closed her eyes and tilted her head back. After a few minutes, she opened her eyes and noticed SP’s gaze fixated on her. The corners of his mouth were slightly curled up in a small grin, his expression soft but at the same time, a hint of sadness hid behind his eyes. She reached for his hand and squeezed it, smiling. There was no need for words because they both felt the same thing. And there was nothing they could do except enjoy these last moments together.

“Should we go get some food?” SP asked when the band decided to go on a ten minute break.

“What about your dad? Shouldn’t you spend the evening with him?” Natalie felt a bit guilty for taking up all of SP’s time while he was here, but at the same time, she wanted nothing more than for him to stay longer.

“We had lunch today, and I’d rather spend it with you.” he told her, his voice low. “I mean, if that’s okay with you.” he added, running his hand through his hair sheepishly.

Natalie tried to keep the smile from breaking out, but failed miserably, her cheeks blushing. “Alright, what are you in the mood for? I think I’m too tired for going into town. We could just get some sandwiches and bring it over to my place.” she offered, immediately regretting the idea. She had never invited SP back to her place. In fact, they had never been in a place where they weren’t surrounded by people.  _Fuck, I made things awkward._

Just as she was about to open her mouth to suggest something else, SP let out a chuckle. “I’d love that. Let’s go.”

* * *

“Hello?” Natalie called out as she entered her uncle’s house, with SP following close behind her.

“Hey!” she heard Matt’s voice coming from the kitchen. She started hurrying up the stairs when her cousin appeared in the hallway. “Well, what do we have here.” he teased, crossing his arms when he saw SP. “Lucy! Get over here!”

“Oh god.” Natalie muttered under her breath, shooting Matt a pleading look and SP an apologetic one.

“Ooooh,  _hello._  You must be SP!” Lucy gushed when she saw who was there, rushing towards SP to shake his hand. “I’m Lucy and this is Matt. We’ve heard  _so_  much about you.” she grinned. SP looked cautiously at Natalie, but burst out in laughter when he saw her mortified expression.

“Aw, Nat. Are we  _embarrassing_  you?” Matt laughed. “Okay, okay. We’re just fucking with you, have fun you two.” he winked, dragging his sister back into the kitchen.

Natalie let out a relieved sigh. “Sorry about that.”

SP was still chuckling, and shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. They seem nice.”

Leading SP to her room, she put the sandwiches on her night stand and grabbed her computer from her desk. SP sat down on her bed, examining the room. There wasn’t much there since she only lived there for a few weeks during the summer. There were a couple of notebooks on her desk, and a few pictures were taped to the walls. Natalie sat down next to him and reached for the sandwiches, handing him one before opening Netflix on her computer.

“What should we watch?”

“Anything that isn’t some cheeky teenage tv show.” he grinned, taking a bite of his sandwich.

She put on an episode of Archer, placed the computer on her bed and fixed the pillows behind them so they could sit more comfortably against the wall. When they finished their sandwiches, SP started shifting his body, trying to get into a comfortable position.

“How’s it going?” Natalie grinned.

“This is not the biggest bed, you know?” he chuckled, grabbing the pillows to rearrange them. He picked up the computer and placed it on her night stand, and laid down next to her. “Lay down, then we can both see.”

Natalie looked at him, slightly confused, but did as he asked. Turning her back to him, she laid down and got comfortable. At first, there was a bit of space between them, as if they were scared of being too close to each other. A few moments later, she felt her body tense as he moved a bit closer and his arm cautiously settled on her waist. With each episode they watched, the more comfortable they became. SP’s body was pressed against her back, his arms wrapped around her, holding her tightly as if he was afraid she was going to disappear. Natalie’s hand was stroking his arm, their legs tangled together.

Suddenly, SP reached his hand to the computer and pressed pause. Natalie had almost fallen asleep so she groaned in confusion and turned to face him. She laid her head on his chest and wrapped her arm around him. His hand travelled to her hair, stroking it gently, his breathing becoming heavier.

“Natalie?”

“Yeah?” she murmured, turning her face up to meet his eyes. He gave her a soft smile but didn’t say anything. She saw his eyes move to her mouth, his lips parting slightly. He shifted his gaze back to her eyes, and leaned down closer to her. Her heart beat faster and when he paused, as if to ask for permission, she reached up and their lips finally met. Her hand crawled around his neck, a low moan escaping her lips when he pulled her closer, deepening the kiss. The kiss was soft and gentle, caring and intimate. She pulled away and buried her face in the corner of his neck.

“Why did you have to make things more complicated?” she whispered.

“I couldn’t leave without doing that at least once.” he sighed. “Can I stay until you fall asleep?”

“Mm, yeah, of course.” she yawned, her eyelids becoming heavier with every second as she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Natalie woke up the next morning alone. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, wondering when SP had left and why he hadn’t woken her up. Unlocking her phone, she noticed it was almost noon. SP was supposed to leave with a train around 10 o’clock. She sighed, realizing she wouldn’t see him again. It was real. In the corner of her eye, she noticed something lying on her night stand. A necklace and a note. She picked up the necklace and realized it was one of SP’s dog tags. A smile broke out on her face as she put it around her neck and grabbed the note.

**If you lose it, I’ll kill you.  
\- SP**

“God damn it, SP.” she whispered to herself, running the dog tag through her fingers.

When she had showered and put on clothes, she walked down the stairs and heard familiar voices coming from the kitchen. Confused, she slowly made her way to the kitchen.

“Mom?” she mumbled, slightly annoyed. They weren’t supposed to come get her for another two days. She straightened her back and put on her fake smile. “Mom! What are you doing here?”

“My dearest Natalie!” her mom gushed, wrapping her arms around her. “We have news.”

Natalie furrowed her brow and looked at her dad, who was standing by the kitchen counter with his arms crossed, smiling. “Your mom and I got a great business opportunity in upstate New York” he explained, his voice low and smooth as always.

“We- we’re moving?!” Natalie gasped. On one hand, she did not want to move and leave all her friends back in Lexington. But on the other, this might mean a fresh start for her, a new place where she could completely be herself. “Where?”

“It’s a small town called Riverdale. We’ll be moving there in a week.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on tumblr! @southsidepea


	3. Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Where did you get that dog tag?” Toni suddenly asked her.
> 
> Natalie looked at her in confusion, and without thinking, her finger started clutching the necklace. “Oh, uhm, my friend gave it to me. Why?”
> 
> Toni narrowed her eyes for a second, before turning her attention back to the book she was holding. “It’s just that my friend has one exactly like that.”

Natalie stood frozen in front of Riverdale High. It was her first day, and she had never been as anxious about anything before. She looked around, noticing a few students arriving, watching her cautiously.  _You’re being stupid, it’s going to be fine._  She took a deep breath, straightened her shirt and made her way up the stairs. She entered into a long hallway, filled with lockers and tired students. Unsure of what to do, walked slowly down the hallway, trying her best to avoid bumping into someone. **  
**

“You must be Natalie Caves!” an excited voice appeared behind her. Natalie turned around and saw a beautiful raven haired girl smiling with her hand reached out to her.

“That’s me.” Natalie smiled and shook the girl’s hand.

“I am Veronica Lodge, and this is Kevin Keller,” the girl pointed to a boy standing next to her who waved, “and we offered to show you around today!”

 _Lodge. As in Lodge Industries?_  “Oh! That’s nice of you, but I’m sure I’ll be fine. I don’t want to-”

“Nonsense!” Veronica interrupted and locked her arm with Natalie’s. “This is gonna be great!” she gushed, grabbing Natalie’s arms and started dragging her down the hallway, Kevin following close behind.

Veronica led her to the principal’s office to get Natalie’s schedule as well as her locker information. Veronica and Kevin were thrilled to see that they shared a few classes, and to Natalie’s relief, Veronica was in her Chemistry class first period. Kevin gave her a short hug before turning the other way, leaving Natalie alone with Veronica.

“So, how do you like our little town so far?” Veronica smirked, nudging her arm as the two girls walked towards their classroom.

“It’s… okay, I guess,” Natalie smiled. “I’ve only been here for a few days so my opinion is still neutral.”

“It’s pretty shitty compared to Boston or New York, but I promise you, you’re gonna like it.” Veronica laughed and halted to a stop. They were standing outside a classroom Natalie figured to be for their Chemistry class.

“Cute necklace by the way.” she winked, tilting her head slightly before turning around to open the door.

Natalie took the dog tag in her hand and smiled at her new friend. Veronica looked a lot like the girls from her old school, but she was friendlier and nicer. Natalie was glad to at least have one person she could talk to, even though it might not have been the one person she wanted to talk to. Her thoughts trailed back to the last summer, a familiar sting appearing in her stomach as she thought of SP. She hated the fact that she couldn’t even call him, just to hear his voice, missing him more with each day that passed.

The girls entered the classroom and Natalie felt everyone’s eyes fixated on her. Being the new kid was going to be something getting used to.

“Everyone, listen up. This is Natalie Caves. She just moved here from Boston.” the teacher announced. Natalie stopped dead in her tracks, raising her hand up in an awkward wave. “Now, take a seat and open your books to page 263.”

Natalie nervously searched the room and spotted Veronica sitting down by a table in the back, an empty chair next to her. She walked awkwardly to the back of the room, sat down next to Veronica and searched her bag for her book.

“Natalie,” Veronica leaned closer to her and whispered, “this is Betty and Jughead.” she continued, nodding her head to the table next to them. A blonde girl with a ponytail was smiling at her, and next to her was a dark haired boy wearing a grey beanie that looked like a crown.

“Hey, it’s nice to meet you guys.” she whispered to the couple and smiled.

When first period was over, Natalie had English class. After Veronica told her where the classroom was, her and Betty disappeared down the hallway. Natalie sighed and started walking in the direction Veronica told her to go.

“English?” she heard someone say, and turned her head up to reveal the boy with the crown beanie.

“Yeah, you too?” she smiled. Jughead nodded and started walking beside her. “Great! I probably would’ve gotten lost.” Natalie laughed, earning a soft chuckle from the boy.

They walked in silence to the classroom and once they entered, Jughead walked straight up to a table at the front to sit down. “You can sit here if you want.” he offered, and Natalie gladly accepted.

Jughead didn’t seem very talkative which Natalie was glad for. There was nothing she hated more than forced conversations about something irrelevant. The class went by quickly and finally it was time for lunch. She followed Jughead outside towards a table by the fence and spotted Veronica, her arms wrapped around a boy with red hair she hadn’t seen before. Betty and Kevin were sitting across from them, in deep conversation.

“Natalie! Come meet Archie!” Veronica called out when she spotted her, a proud grin on her face. “Natalie, this is Archie. Archie, this is Natalie.”

Natalie greeted the group and sat down next to Veronica. Jughead sat down next to Betty who gave him a soft peck on the cheek.

The friend group started interrogating Natalie about her past, why she moved to Riverdale and how she felt about the school so far. Kevin was very interested in knowing about her love life, and Natalie’s thoughts wandered again to SP, a soft smile appearing on her face.

“That smile tells me there was someone special back home.” Veronica smirked, “Spill!”

Natalie’s smile quickly disappeared and her cheeks turned bright red. “There was no one, I swear!” she giggled, her hand reaching for the dog tag around her neck.

“Oh my god,” Kevin rolled his eyes and grinned, “I’ll leave you alone for now, but at some point, you’re gonna have to tell me the details.”

“So, tell me something interesting about Riverdale.” Natalie said, changing the subject from her  _whatever-it-was_.

“Wow, where to begin?” Betty laughed.

“How long do we have? Half an hour?” Kevin joked, narrowing his eyes a bit before turning to Natalie. “Okay so last summer, this boy, Jason Blossom, was murdered.”

“What?! Oh my god.” Natalie gasped, “Did they find out who did it?”

“Oh, that’s the best part,” Jughead stated, “his own father pulled the trigger.”

“Jughead,” Betty hissed, before turning to Natalie. “It was tragic. He threatened Jug’s dad so he would cover it up…”

“And now he’s in jail.” Jughead said blankly.

The group told her the whole story, how Betty and Jughead found Jason’s car, and eventually a video of the event. Natalie was horrified. She couldn’t believe someone would do that, and to their own child for that matter. The bell rang and they assured her those horrifying days were over, before waving goodbye and heading to class.

Natalie didn’t share the rest of her classes with any of the group. She didn’t know if she should call them friends or not. Maybe they were just being nice since she was the new girl. When the school day was finally over, Natalie headed over to her locker to return her books, and found a note lying inside.

**Meet at Pop’s after class  
** **\- V**

* * *

Natalie had been at Riverdale High for three weeks. So much had happened since her first day at school. She had gotten very close with Veronica as well as the rest of the group. The first week had been a bit weird. Natalie felt too awkward to try and make friends, but thankfully Veronica had been very consistent on integrating her into her friend group. It hadn’t been until the Pop’s incident, Natalie had felt like she was a part of a friendship. When Archie’s dad had been shot, Veronica had called her immediately and Natalie rushed to the hospital, staying there with the rest of her classmates, waiting patiently for any news of her friend’s father. Thankfully, he ended up fine.

Everything seemed to be going back to normal until Jughead transferred to Southside High. Midge and Moose were shot, describing a black hood and green eyes of the man holding the gun, the same description as the man who shot Archie’s father. Everything became so much more real after that. People were scared to go outside after dark, Alice Cooper was blaming the Southside for the attempted murders, publishing a letter someone left on her front porch.

**_“I am the wolf. You are the flock. This is the bloodletting.”_ **

The words were still fast printed in Natalie’s brain. There was an actual psychopath in Riverdale, attempting to ‘clear the town of sinners’. It only became worse after Archie and the football team posted a video online, calling themselves the Red Circle, threatening the Black Hood.  _How stupid._  Her mother had almost banned her from going to school, but thankfully her father talked her out of it.

Natalie was walking down the hallway looking for Betty. Betty had gone to the Blue & Gold office to get the mail, and hadn’t showed up to class. Natalie arrived outside the office and knocked lightly on the door before opening it carefully.

“Betty?”

Kevin and Betty were sitting by the desk, Kevin was obviously shocked because of something and Betty just looked at her blankly. Natalie stopped, debating if she should leave or not.

“Sorry, uhm, what’s going on?” she asked sheepishly. Kevin gestured her to close the door so she did, before sitting down next to him. “Did something happen?”

Betty didn’t say anything but handed her a letter and a paper with a cipher on it. Natalie scanned over the letter, her eyes widening with every word. “Jesus christ. This is seriously fucked up.” she huffed, handing Betty back the letter.

“My speech…” Betty took a deep breath, shaking her head, “…inspired him. That  _stupid_  speech I wrote.”

“So, the Black Hood was at the Jubilee.” Kevin said.

“The entire town was there!”

“We should give this to Kevin’s dad.” Natalie offered, swallowing the fear that started to flow through her.  _Shit._

“The cipher, yeah, sure. But not the letter.” Betty’s voice was shaky and nervous. “This- This is just… for me. We can’t tell anyone about it.”

“This is evidence!” Kevin argued, and turned his head to Natalie for support.

“I- I don’t know…” Natalie muttered. She understood why Betty didn’t want to give the letter to the sheriff, but at the same time, it seemed like a bad idea not to.

Kevin and Betty argued some more about what to do with the letter and Betty explained how this was obviously a test, meant only for her. Kevin finally gave in and the trio left the office in silence, tension forming with each step they took.

The rest of the day, Natalie felt numb. Was this really happening? Betty did give her mother the cipher and the day after, it was on the front page of the newspaper. Natalie decided not to go to school that day. She’d rather stay at home with her own thoughts than the chaos that would be Riverdale High at the moment. In the afternoon, she got a call from Betty, asking her to come with her to Jughead’s trailer and work on the cipher. Natalie wasn’t ecstatic about getting involved, but was getting bored out of her mind, locked up in her room, so she accepted.

Kevin offered to walk with her to the Southside, since Natalie had never been there before. Natalie didn’t know much about the Southside. She had heard talks of a gang called the Southside Serpents, and apparently Jughead’s father was their leader, but she knew little else. The fact that the gang was called the Serpents made her think of SP’s snake tattoo.  _What a coincidence._

When Natalie and Kevin arrived at Jughead’s trailer, Betty was already there as well as a pink-haired girl called Toni, Jughead’s friend from his new school. She had on a leather jacket, a huge serpent printed on the back of it. The design was awfully similar to SP’s tattoo.  _That’s weird._  They ordered some food and started working on the cipher, without much luck.

“These symbols look so familiar to me.” Betty suddenly broke the silence. “It’s like I’ve seen them before, and it’s driving me crazy I can’t figure out where.”

“Maybe if you loosened your ponytail.” Toni said, causing the other four people in the room to look at her with furrowed brows. “What? That was… a joke, guys.”

“Betty’s ponytail is iconic, and beyond reproach.” Kevin said, offended, making Jughead and Natalie chuckle.

“Kev, it’s fine. At this point, I’m willing to try anything.” Betty sighed and removed the hair tie, letting her hair loose.

There was something extremely uncomfortable about the atmosphere in the room, so Natalie started going through the papers again, hoping to avoid the tension.

“Where did you get that dog tag?” Toni suddenly asked her.

Natalie looked at her in confusion, and without thinking, her finger started clutching the necklace. “Oh, uhm, my friend gave it to me. Why?”

Toni narrowed her eyes for a second, before turning her attention back to the book she was holding. “It’s just that my friend has one exactly like that.” she stated dully.

_Okay, that’s definitely weird._

“Let’s go back to the basics.” Jughead sat up from the couch, “What do we know about this guy? Who is he?”

“He’s a white male, in his 40s. Like, almost every serial killer ever.” Toni answered.

“No, I mean, like, why… Why is he killing people?” Jughead wondered, “Or at least, why now?”

Betty, Natalie and Kevin shared a look before Betty spoke up. “We know the Hood’s obsessed with cleansing the town of sinners and hypocrites, right? And he seems to be attacking anyone with ties to the Northside.”

“Here we go with the fake news again.” Toni interrupted, clearly annoyed. “You Northsiders and your privilege! All you do is demonize the Southside, so of course you think the Black Hood’s from there.”

If Natalie thought the atmosphere was uncomfortable before, she was dead wrong. Kevin looked at her with a look that clearly said  _‘Oh shit’_. Betty and Toni kept arguing and suddenly Toni announced that Jughead was lying to Betty about sitting with the Serpents at lunch. Natalie wanted to disappear in that moment, the tension was unbearable.

“I’m gonna go…” Kevin broke the awkward silence and Natalie had never been as thankful.

“Yeah, I should go too.” she said and stood up, and to her surprise Toni started packing her things and headed to the door as well.

She closed the door to the trailer behind her and saw Toni storming away. “Toni, wait!” she called and ran after her. She needed to ask her about the dog tag and her friend. She had to know. She finally caught up with her and managed to grab Toni’s arm.

“What do you want?” Toni rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

“Sorry. Uhm, why did you ask me about the dog tag?” Natalie asked and swallowed.

Toni looked at her for a moment, furrowing her eyebrows and sighed. “Were you in Pittsburgh this summer?”

Natalie’s stomach turned. How did she know that? Was SP from here? How could this be happening? She opened her mouth to say something when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She mouthed a sorry and picked up the phone, opening the text message from Veronica.

**Come to the tracks, the Serpents showed up and the Bulldogs are getting ready to fight them, need help  
** **\- Veronica**

“Toni?” Natalie stuttered, still looking at her phone.

“What?” she spat back, hands still crossed.

“Apparently Archie and the football team are about to fight some Serpents by the tracks…”

Toni dropped her hands to her sides and clenched her jaw, letting out a frustrated sigh before turning on her heels and walking away. Natalie stood there, frozen, until Toni turned around and called, “Well? Come on then!”

By the time Natalie and Toni were halfway to the tracks, it started pouring rain. A few hundred feet away, Natalie saw a group of boys, standing opposite each other in a line. Motorcycles were parked on the Serpents side, and a few cars were behind the Bulldogs. Toni grabbed Natalie’s arm and led her behind one of the cars to get a better look. She saw Archie in the front, taking a step towards the line of Serpents. A tall boy was sitting on a motorcycle, his raven black hair dripping wet from the rain. He stood up and walked up to Archie, towering over him.

_Oh my god. It can’t be._

She watched, terrified, as Archie took a step back, clenching his fist, and using his whole body weight to slam it into the Serpents jaw. Natalie let out a loud gasp as she watched SP fall to the ground and chaos broke out between the rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on tumblr! @southsidepea


	4. Silence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Silence. Natalie hated that silence. Last summer, their silences had been comforting, peaceful. But now, there was just tension and confusion and unspoken words, hovering over them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> finally managed to write another chapter!!!!!! yay me right? sorry it's such a short chapter and i'll do my best to post the next chapter asap!  
> thanks to tori for proofreading and everyone else who has been supportive and amazing xx  
> let me know what you think and catch me on tumblr at either @southsidepea or @nataliecaves

Everything was in slow motion.

Natalie’s head was spinning. She stared as SP got back on his feet and scanned the chaos around him, a murderous look on his face. She wanted to yell out his name, to tell him to stop, but she couldn’t. It was hard to know what was going on. Boys were clashing into each other, some wearing leather jackets and others wearing varsity jackets. For a second, she lost sight of SP. Without thinking, she took a step forward and opened her mouth. 

Before a sound could come out, a hand grabbed her arm and she was being yanked back behind the car. Her head shot towards Toni, who was shaking her head warningly. She had to do something. She couldn’t let her friends get hurt. Terrified, she turned back to the fight and scanned the crowd. She noticed Archie lying on the ground; a tall figure wearing a Serpent jacket rushing over to him.

“SP, don’t.” she whispered.

He towered over Archie who was trying to get back on his feet. Before Natalie could blink, SP was slamming his foot into Archies stomach. Lightning struck, allowing her to see his face for a split second. His lip was cracked and blood was running down to his chin. She felt her stomach turn as she noticed his eyes. They were dark and filled with hatred. This was not the SP she had met during the summer. This was someone entirely different. 

Suddenly, there was a gunshot behind her.

Veronica was standing between two cars, holding a gun to the air. Natalie gave Toni a concerned look before rushing towards SP. The Bulldogs were fleeing back to the cars and she saw SP sprinting back to his motorcycle, along with the other Serpents. 

“SP!” she cried out, pushing aside anyone in her way. His head shot towards her and his eyes widened.

“Natalie! What the fuck are you doing?!” Archie ran after her and grabbed her arm, forcing her to face him. 

“Let go of me, Archie.” she huffed in frustration and tried to wiggle herself loose.

His grip tightened on her arm, “He’s a psychopath, Natalie. Think about what you’re doing.”

“I know what I’m doing. Let. Me. Go.” she spat, looking at him warningly before he sighed and let go of her arm. 

Quickly turning her head back in SP’s direction, she noticed him getting off his bike and strutting towards them. A smile broke out on his face as she hurried towards him. His hand reached out as they got closer and finally, she was pressed against his body and SP’s hands were wrapped around her. Burying her face in his chest, she let out a relieved sigh and squeezed him tightly. In that moment, everything that had happened disappeared. The moving, the murders, the letters, none of it mattered. She knew this moment wouldn’t last forever, but she never wanted it to end.

He sighed and pulled away slightly, his hand cupping her face as his eyes trailed over it. His eyes weren’t full of hate like before. Now, she only saw relief and fondness.

“What the fuck is going on? Why were you fighting Archie? Why are you in Riverdale?” she yelled out in confusion and pushed him away, taking a step back. The smile disappeared on his face and he clenched his jaw.

“It’s hard to explain, Nat.” he muttered, clenching his fists and avoiding eye contact.

Natalie took a deep breath to calm herself down and reached for his hand. “You’re bleeding.” she mumbled.

SP scoffed and turned to look at her, “Yeah, no shit Bubbles.” He grinned, squeezing her hand. Natalie smiled softly at the sound of his nickname for her and raised her hand up to his face to get a better look at the cut and the bruise forming around his left eye. 

“We should get that cleaned up. Where do you live?” 

“Uhm… it’s maybe not the best place to go. It’ll be fine, don’t worry about it,” he assured her.

“Okay fine, we’ll go to my place,” she stated firmly, and started dragging him with her in the direction of her home. “It’s not that far from here, come on.”

They arrived outside her house after a few minutes. Natalie halted to a stop and turned to SP, putting her finger over his mouth, telling him to stay quiet before leading him up the stairs. She silently opened the door and peeked inside to check if her parents were close or not. To her relief, she heard them talking in the living room on the other side of the house. Quickly going up the stairs with SP following close behind, she suddenly heard her mother call out.

“Natalie? Is that you?” 

“Yes, it’s me mother. I’ve had a long day so I’ll be in my room. Good night!” she answered nervously before hurrying up to her room. It’s not that her parents wouldn’t let her bring home a boy, but a boy wearing a leather jacket and combat boots with a cracked lip wasn’t exactly ideal. 

Closing the door behind them, she instantly went into her walk-in closet to find something to replace SP’s soaking wet clothes. Taking off her own clothes, she put on her silk nightgown before grabbing an oversized shirt and the biggest sweatpants she could find and returning to where SP was standing by her desk. 

“Just put the clothes in here after you take them off.” she told him, motioning towards an empty laundry basket by the door. “I’ll go get something to clean the cut.” 

He nodded, his eyes trailing down her body before he quickly looked away and slowly started removing his jacket and boots, placing them in the basket. Natalie went into the bathroom that was connected to her room, got a clean cloth, a towel and a disinfectant. Using the towel to dry her hair, she entered her bedroom and had to stop herself from laughing at the sight of her tall friend. SP had the oversized shirt on (that seemed like a normal shirt on him) and was struggling to put on the sweatpants that were almost too tight and only went down to the middle of his calves. Noticing her expression, he let out a breathy laugh and spun around, showing off his new outfit.

“Do I look good, or what?” he smirked and Natalie burst out in laughter. 

“This is an  _ amazing _ look on you, SP.” she snickered as she sat down on the bed. “Now, sit down and let me see your lip, idiot.”

SP sat down next to her and Natalie started cleaning the cut. “So, care to explain what that fight was about?”

“That ginger friend of yours? He came into the Southside and started tagging a bunch of red circles on our turf. Then, when me and my boys confronted him about it, he waved a gun in my face.” he explained, clenching his jaw.

Natalie’s eyes widened in shock and she stopped what she was doing, noticing how SP’s body tensed at the topic. “He did  _ what _ ?!”

“So… I might’ve riled up a few boys and gone to his house to show him he shouldn’t fuck with us.” he continued, looking at Natalie with hint of shame. 

“So you decided that threatening him and beating him up was the answer? Archie might be an idiot but I didn’t think you were that stupid.” Natalie sighed in disappointment.

“I guess I am that stupid.” 

They sat there awkwardly in silence, SP had his elbows resting on his thighs, staring blankly at the wall in front of him while Natalie put the cloth on her nightstand and nervously started playing with the dog tag around her neck. Noticing what she was doing from the corner of his eye, he turned his head to face her and a soft smile appeared on his face.

“Oh, uh, sorry. You’ll probably want this back,” she mumbled and started taking the necklace off. 

He raised his hand and gently grabbed her hand, stopping her from taking it off. “Don’t. I want you to keep it.” 

Natalie let go of the necklace and turned to look at him. His brown eyes were fixated on hers, the corners of his mouth curling up in a shy smile. He moved his hand to gently cup her face, his thumb stroking her cheek as he leaned closer and rested his forehead on hers. Natalie felt fluttering in her stomach as she felt his warm breath on her face. Closing her eyes, she thought of the summer and the time she’d spent with him. The time he had kissed her and then left.

They sat like this for a moment before Natalie sighed and pulled away. “So, you actually are in a gang.” she stated, letting out a nervous laughter, remembering how she joked about his tattoo the first time they met.

“Something like that...”

Silence. Natalie hated that silence. Last summer, their silences had been comforting, peaceful. But now, there was just tension and confusion and unspoken words, hovering over them.

“What does SP stand for?” 

“Promise you won’t laugh?” he asked with a serious tone, and Natalie nodded. “Sweet Pea.”

“Your name is  _ Sweet Pea _ ?” she snickered, immediately covering her mouth to keep herself from laughing more. Sweet Pea gently punched her arm and frowned. “Sorry, I’m not laughing. I swear!” she managed to say with a normal voice, before bursting out in laughter again, causing Sweet Pea to start chuckling.

When Natalie finally managed to stop laughing, she placed her hand on Sweet Pea’s shoulder and smiled. “Okay, but in all seriousness. Is that really your real name?”

“That will have to remain a mystery, Bubbles.” he smirked, taking her hand into his. 

“That’s just mean.” she complained.

Neither of them said anything. This time, the silence didn’t feel as uncomfortable, but Natalie still felt something was off. All of the sudden, Sweet Pea stood up and started running his fingers through his hair nervously.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Natalie stood up and put her arms around his torso. 

“I’m sorry Natalie… it’s just that, things are different here. I wish it wasn’t but, it’s complicated.” he sighed, refusing to look at her.

“What do you mean?” she furrowed her brows, placing her hand on his cheek and turned him to face her. 

He clenched his jaw and sighed as he finally looked at her. “You go to Riverdale High and I’m at Southside High. You come from a rich family and I’m living in a trailer with my mom.”

“Sweet Pea… I don’t care about any of that.” she assured him. His jaw clenched as he shook his head and took a deep breath. 

“You don’t know anything about me, Natalie. You know that right?” he hissed, pulling away. “I’m in a fucking gang! There are different rules here. This isn’t going to be like last summer, it just isn’t going to work.” 

Natalie opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. She felt a sting in her stomach and tears forming in her eyes. Clenching her fists, she took a deep breath and sat back down on the bed. “So last summer didn’t mean anything to you?” she whispered, her eyes filled with hurt and disappointment.

“That’s not what I meant.” he muttered, and sheepishly sat down next to her. “I’m sorry, Natalie.”

Natalie scoffed but didn’t say anything. Once again, there was only silence. After a moment, Sweet Pea stood up and turned towards her. “I should get going… I’m sorry.”

Before he could turn to walk out the door, Natalie grabbed his hand. “Please, don’t go.” she pleaded. She just got him back into her life, she wouldn’t lose him again just yet. “Can we just forget about the whole different worlds drama until tomorrow?”

Sweet Pea looked at her hesitantly, before sighing and sitting back on the bed next to her. Natalie snuck her hands around his torso and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her in closer. His hand travelled up her back and to the back of her head, stroking her hair gently. After a moment, he pulled away slightly and planted a soft kiss on her forehead.

“Let’s go to sleep, okay?” he whispered, cupping her face and brushing his thumb over her cheek. Natalie nodded. She laid down on her bed and Sweet Pea pulled the covers over them as he snuggled in behind her. He cautiously placed his hand over her waist and pulled her closer to him. 

“SP?” Natalie whispered.

“Mmh?” 

“If you don’t want to make this work - whatever this is - that’s fine. But you can’t say that it won’t work if we don’t even try.” she stated, turning her head slightly to look at him.

“Alright. We’ll try and make it work.”


	5. Doubt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I’m really sorry, SP. That must’ve been really hard.”
> 
> “Don’t be sorry. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for my shitty childhood.” he smiled, his thumb stroking the back of her hand. “And I wouldn’t have met you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's to a tiny bit of fluff!  
> Thanks to my ultimate bae, Alex, for editing and Krissi for being amazing as always. It's been taking me such a long time to write these days but I'm already working on the next chapter so hopefully I'll have it up tomorrow or Monday!  
> Hope you like it!  
> Find me on tumblr @southsidepea for shitposting and other writing, or @nataliecaves for "extras" connected to this fic!

“Natalie?! You’re going to be late for school!”

Natalie woke up to the sound of her mother knocking on her door. Panicking, she quickly opened her eyes and turned to look at the empty space next to her on the bed. _How does he manage to sneak out like that without waking me up?_ She sighed, relieved and mildly disappointed , before standing up and going to her closet to change.

“Be right there mother!” she shouted when she heard another knock on the door, more impatient than the one before.

She put on a cream colored shirt and a light gray skirt, as well as a gray capelet to match the outfit. Looking at her clock, she realized class would start in fifteen minutes. She quickly put her hair in a messy bun and took a look in the mirror to make sure she looked decent enough, before grabbing her bag and hurrying down the stairs to where her mother was waiting.

“I made you lunch, do you want me to drive you to school?” her mother, Scarlet, said with a smile as she handed Natalie her lunch.

“No, it’s alright mother, I can walk.”

“You’ll be late, Natalie. I’m driving you.” Scarlet stated flatly, turning on her heels to open the door. Natalie sighed, but followed her to the car. “Now, who was that boy I saw sneaking out this morning?” her mother asked as they got in.

 _Oh god._ Natalie thought and swallowed before faking a smile. “Remember that guy I met last summer I told you about, SP? Turns out he lives here, on the Southside,” she explained, hoping her mother would act decent about it. Scarlet Caves had been _very_ curious when Lucy had ‘accidentally’ mentioned SP when her parents came to pick her up at her uncle’s, demanding Natalie would tell her everything she knew about the boy.

“The _South_ side?” Scarlet sneered, her mouth forming a straight line and a worried look on her face. “I don’t want you anywhere near the Southside, you hear me? It’s filled with low-life gang members and drug addicts and violence. You stay away from there. Is that clear?”

Natalie’s eyes narrowed and she turned to look out the window. “Yes, mother.” she muttered. _Typical._

The rest of the drive to school was quiet. When they pulled over, Scarlet had her signature smile plastered on her face and gave Natalie a quick kiss on the cheek. Natalie _hated_ that about her mother. Nothing she said or did seemed genuine. Except maybe hating the Southside like every other person living on the Northside.

“Be sure to say hi to Veronica for me!” Scarlet called after her as she closed the car door. Rolling her eyes, she hurried inside and headed towards her locker to get her books. She quickly looked at her phone and saw she still had five minutes until class started.

“Natalie!” a voice called further down the hallway. Natalie looked over her shoulder to see Veronica strutting towards her, a concerned look on her face. She smiled and closed her locker, Veronica’s arm locking with hers as they started walking down the hallway. “Care to explain what that was yesterday?”

Natalie furrowed her brow and turned to look at her friend. “Explain what?” she asked, confused.

“You? And the serpent? Ring any bells?”

“Oh,” she laughed, “We met in Pittsburgh last summer.”

“Wait, hold on a minute,” Veronica halted to a stop and turned to face her, “Your mystery guy you wouldn’t tell me about is a _serpent?!”_

“Apparently so,” Natalie sighed.

“And… are you… what is going on between you two?”

“He’s my friend. I don’t know. Now can we go to class?” she pleaded, pulling an unconvinced Veronica by the arm towards the classroom.

The bell rang the moment the girls entered the room and sat down at their table. “How come you didn’t know he lived in Riverdale?” Veronica whispered as the teacher started to write something on the board.

“We didn’t really talk about any of that. It didn’t seem important. I mean, I thought I’d never see him again, so…” Natalie answered, giving Veronica a warning look before turning her attention to the teacher.

“You need to be careful, okay? He could be dangerous.” Veronica scoffed and opened her book.

“He could… but I know he would never hurt me.” Natalie explained with slight hesitation, her hand reaching for the dog tag around her neck.

Veronica’s words made Natalie think of the night before and the whole ‘different worlds’ situation, Sweet Pea was sure this was never going to work. Could he really be dangerous? It was true what he said, she really did not know anything about him. She might’ve known SP who was visiting his father over the summer, but Sweet Pea was someone else. Two sides of the same coin.

She wondered why he had snuck out this morning without saying anything. This time, he didn’t leave a note and she had no idea where she could find him. She could ask Jughead, since he probably knew him from school, but maybe it was best to just leave it alone for now. Maybe it really wasn’t going to work with them.

* * *

 

The day went by painfully slow. Natalie was too distracted by her own thoughts to pay attention in class, and when the bell finally indicated it was lunchtime, she quietly gathered her things and made her way to the cafeteria. She spotted Kevin sitting at their usual table scrolling through his phone, the others nowhere in sight. Natalie took a seat across from him and let out a long sigh. Kevin eyes darted up, noticing how distracted she looked.

“Alright, tell me what’s wrong.” Kevin demanded, putting away his phone and leaning back in his chair.

“It’s nothing, I’m fine.” she lied, sighing defeatedly when Kevin furrowed his brows and crossed his arms, unconvinced. “Okay, fine. I met a guy last summer...”

“I knew it!” Kevin interrupted, slamming his hands on the table causing Natalie to shoot him an annoyed look. “Yeah okay, sorry, do continue.”

“I mean, we were really close and before he left he kissed me and I thought I’d never see him again.” she continued with a sigh. “Then yesterday, Veronica texted me about a fight between the Serpents and the Bulldogs, and guess who was at the front of the line, ready to beat the crap out of Archie.”

Kevin’s eyes widened and he leaned forward. “Are you _serious_ ?! He’s a Serpent? And you didn’t know he was from here? Why was he fighting Archie? Did you talk to him? Oh my god, tell me _everything!_ ” he blurted out, the curiosity almost overwhelming.

Natalie rolled her eyes and sighed. “Keep it down will you? I went to talk to him and we went to my place to patch him up. And no, I didn’t know he lived here.”

“This is such a Grease moment, I’m loving it.” he raved, a huge smile on his face. “And? What happened?!”

“He kind of snapped and went on about how things were different here and how it would never work out. It’s not like I’m asking him to marry me, I was just happy to get my friend back.” she frowned. “I asked if we could just try to figure it out and he stayed the night, then this morning he was gone.”

“He probably just didn’t want to have an awkward moment with your parents at the breakfast table,” Kevin commented, giving her a reassuring smile.

“Yeah, well, I don’t know. Then my mom had this outburst about how the Southside is dangerous and Veronica told me to be careful and that he could be dangerous. And now I’m just doubting everything. I don’t know what to do, Kev.”

“Hey, he might be in a gang and living on the Southside, but that doesn’t mean he’s a bad guy.” Kevin smiled, “I was dating this guy named Joaquin who was in the Serpents, and he was really amazing. I say why not just see what happens?”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right...” Natalie sighed, reaching for his hand. “Thanks, Kev.”

Feeling slightly calmer than before her conversation with Kevin, Natalie headed home as soon as the last class was dismissed. When she arrived outside her house, she heard someone whistle behind her and confused, she turned to see where it came from. Sweet Pea was leaning against a motorcycle a few feet away with his arms crossed, a bright smile on his face.

“Are you stalking me or something?” Natalie chuckled and walked up to him.

“Something like that,” he grinned, “Are you busy?”

Natalie looked at her house and then back at Sweet Pea, “Not at all. Where to?”

His eyes lit up and he got on his bike, handing her a helmet. She smiled, putting on the helmet and positioned herself behind him. Her hands wrapped around his torso, her chest pressed against his back. Even though she had worried and confused earlier, she only felt relief and excitement. She had never ridden a motorcycle before, but she felt safe around him. She didn’t care about the issues they might have, she trusted him and trying to make it work was worth a shot.

“Hold on tight, Bubbles.” he announced, before riding off down the street.

Natalie immediately tightened her grip around him, a rush of adrenaline flowing through her body as they raced down the streets. They passed the train tracks and he suddenly turned to the right, so they were headed out of the town. She noticed Sweetwater River on their left, houses turning to trees, surrounding them. After a few minutes, he finally slowed down and they came to a stop by a small road leading into the woods.

Natalie took off the helmet, Sweet Pea quickly got off the bike and reached out his hand to help her off. Noticing how messy her skirt and hair had gotten in the wind, she let out a frustrated groan and out of habit, started fixing her appearance. Sweet Pea watched her for a moment before laughing and reaching for her hand, dragging her down the small path through the trees. Natalie couldn’t help but smile, maybe he really was the same SP as the one she met last summer. He seemed genuinely happy, the corners of his mouth curling up every time he looked at her, excitement painted on his face.

He led her down to a small clearing by the river. Natalie looked around, amazed at the beautiful view. The sky was clear, a light breeze hitting her face, the sun reflecting on the water surface. Turning around, she saw Sweet Pea going through his backpack and pulling out a paper bag.

“I brought sandwiches,” he smiled, offering her the bag. Natalie heard her stomach growl, realizing she hadn’t eaten anything more than half of the lunch her mother made her. She accepted the bag and pulled out a sloppy homemade sandwich. Smiling to herself, she sat down on one of the rocks and took a bite.

“Thank you,” she said while trying to chew. The sandwich contained a slice of ham and a small amount of butter, and the bread was a little drier than normal.

Sweet Pea watched her, a faint smile mixed with embarrassment on his face. “Sorry, uhm, we didn’t have much at home.” he muttered, taking a bite of his own sandwich.

“No! It’s fine, honestly.” Natalie laughed, placing her hand on his shoulder. He didn’t say anything, just looked at her and smiled. “This place is beautiful, how did you even find it?” she asked in admiration, looking around her.

“My dad used to take me here when I was young.” he told her, and Natalie noticed a hint of sadness in his expression. “I started coming here whenever my parents were fighting at home, kind of like a place to get away from reality, I guess. Now I just go here whenever I want to relax or think.”

“To getting away from reality, then.” Natalie held up her sandwich to his, and felt her heart flutter when a huge grin appeared on his face as he reached his sandwich up as well. “What was it like growing up here?”

Sweet Pea turned his head towards her and gave her a soft smile. “It was hard. We didn’t have a lot of money and the town doesn’t do much for the Southside. When my dad left, my mom didn’t have anything. But we survived, and continue to do so. I guess that’s all that matters.”

Natalie didn’t know what to say. His life was so different from hers. She had grown up with wealthy, successful parents. She was used to getting everything she wanted by doing nothing. She didn’t know what it was like to have nothing, to have parents that didn’t love each other, struggling to get food on the table. She sighed and shifted closer to him, leaning her head on his shoulder and gently squeezed his hand.

“I’m really sorry, SP. That must’ve been really hard.” she frowned.

“Don’t be sorry. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for my shitty childhood.” he smiled, his thumb stroking the back of her hand. “And I wouldn’t have met you.”

Natalie’s head shot up, their faces inches away from each other. Sweet Pea’s eyes trailed down to her mouth, his hand moving to cup her face. Natalie’s heart was beating faster, the warmth of his touch sending an electrifying shock through her. He leaned closer so his lips were barely touching hers, and before they could connect, he suddenly tilted his head and pressed a soft kiss on her cheek. Resting their foreheads together, he gently stroke his fingers through her hair and gave her a sad smile.

“I should get you home, it’s starting to get dark. Wouldn’t want the black hood to kill us now would we?” he joked, pulling away and reaching for his bag before standing up.

Disappointed, Natalie sighed and followed him back to the road where his motorcycle was parked. There was an awkward tension between them, only growing when she positioned herself behind him on the bike, gingerly wrapping her arms around him as they rode back into town. As they stopped on the corner of her street, they got off the bike and stood for a few seconds in silence, Sweet Pea running his hand through his hair and Natalie tugging at her necklace, nervously.

“So… see you around?”

“Give me your phone.” Natalie said, reaching her hand out.

“What?” he asked in confusion.

“Give me your phone, then next time you wanna take me into the woods you don’t have to stalk me.” she smirked, with her hand still reached out. He let out a breathy laugh and reached for his phone before handing it to her. She quickly typed in her number, saved it to his contacts and sent herself a text, before handing it back to him.

“Today was nice, I needed that.” she said quietly and stepped closer to him, pulling him into a hug.

“Yeah, me too.” he sighed against the corner of her neck, his arms wrapping around her and squeezing gently before pulling away and getting on his bike. “See you around, Bubbles.” he smirked and rode off.


	6. Distress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Nat? Care to join?” Veronica smiled, offering her a straw. Natalie hesitated, looking at Betty who furrowed her brows, before grabbing the straw and smiling. She could use a distraction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Find me at @southsidepea on tumblr!

“The St. Clair’s are coming later today and daddy asked me to keep him company.” Veronica explained, sitting next to Kevin across from Natalie at Pop’s. Natalie had barely been paying any attention; her eyes glued to her phone as she focused on typing a text message to Sweet Pea.

Ever since they exchanged phone numbers, Natalie has not been able to get away from her phone. With the upcoming open-house the Lodge’s were hosting, Natalie’s mother had made sure she was busy with helping Veronica out with anything she could. Since she hadn’t been able to see Sweet Pea since the other day, they instead texted all day long.

**Are you busy? Im going to the quarry with toni and fangs if u wanna join**

**\- SP**

“Natalie?! I swear I’m going to throw your phone in the toilet.” Veronica’s irritated voice snapped her back to reality.

“What?” she asked, confused.

“Will you come later? I know Nick would love to meet you,” Veronica smiled, tilting her head to the side.

“Oh, I can’t. I’m sorry V, I have plans with Pea.” she frowned, secretly glad she didn’t have to spend time with a spoiled rich boy from New York.

“Pea? What a cute little nickname for your boyfriend.” Kevin let out a laugh, quickly pulling himself together when Veronica shot him a frustrated glare.

“He’s not my boyfriend.” Natalie scoffed, rolling her eyes as she typed a reply to Sweet Pea, saying she would come.

Veronica and Kevin shared a knowing look and grinned. “Yeah, you’re just _friends_ , I forgot.” Veronica teased. “Does she text you this much? I mean, you’re also her _friend,_ right?” she looked at Kevin who scoffed.

“She doesn’t! I guess I’m _not_ her friend.”

“Oh, shut up you guys.” Natalie smirked, standing up and grabbing her bag. “Sorry, V. I’ll talk to you later, alright?”

“Fine… You better not bail on the open-house for your boyfriend!”

“Not my boyfriend!” Natalie called over her shoulder, before disappearing through the door.

It was a ten minute walk to the quarry. When she approached the spot, she heard laughter fill the air and noticed Sweet Pea and a shorter boy clutching their stomachs while Toni stood over them with crossed arms, frowning.

“Thank god!” Toni breathed out as she noticed Natalie. “Now I don’t have to deal with these assholes alone.”

“It’s good to see you too,” Natalie chuckled, her cheeks turning pink when Sweet Pea turned around to face her, a smirk appearing on his face.

“Bubbles!” he rushed over to her and wrapped his arms around her. She sighed against his chest, returning the hug. Awfully aware they were not alone, she quickly pulled away and smiled. Sweet Pea turned around to face his friends, his hand positioned firmly on her lower back, causing her to blush even more.

“Hey, guys.” she looked at Toni and the other boy, raising her hand up in an awkward wave.

“Fangs,” the boy reached his hand out to her, smirking.

“Natalie.” she smiled, shaking his hand. Fangs’ eyes moved to where Sweet Pea’s hand was placed, before shooting Toni a knowing look.

Sweet Pea grinned and turned around to face her, his hand still on her back, keeping her close to him. “I’m glad you came.” he said lowly.

“Me too.” she smiled, trying to keep her cheeks from turning blood red. “Shouldn’t we join your friends?” she laughed, glancing over to the couple who quickly looked away after watching the two of them closely.

“If you insist,” he chuckled, reaching for her hand and walked towards Toni and Fangs who had sat down a few feet away.

Natalie sat down on a large rock across from them, and Sweet Pea took a place right next to her. Natalie tried hiding the smile that came across her face when he shifted closer to her and moved his arm over her shoulder, but failed miserably.

Natalie was glad to have a chance to properly meet Sweet Pea’s friends. They seemed to accept Natalie instantly and she felt comfortable around them. They were the total opposite of what she imagined her friends would be like, if they ever got to properly meet him. Natalie wondered what this all meant. The way Sweet Pea was acting, especially around his friends, gentle touches here and there, low whispers in her ear when he thought no one was looking. The way her stomach fluttered whenever he came closer to her, the blood rushing to her cheeks. It almost felt too perfect.

Toni and Fangs soon started debating on whether some girl at their school was actually hot or not, causing Sweet Pea and Natalie to laugh. Natalie felt his hand sneak into hers, tangling their fingers together. Her skin tingled at the touch and she squeezed his hand gently, smiling. Sweet Pea turned to look at her, the corners of his mouth curling up. Their faces were only inches away from each other and Natalie felt her heart beating faster by the second. His brown hues stared deep into her eyes before trailing down to her mouth as he leaned a bit closer.

“Hey, lovebirds!” Fangs suddenly shouted, snapping them back to reality. “Who would you rather get with, me, or Toni?”

“That’s not fair!” Toni complained. “She’s obviously straight and Sweet Pea would never pick me in front of his girlfriend.”

Sweet Pea’s body tensed and he immediately let go of her hand, shifting his body further away. Natalie looked at him in confusion. “Obviously I’d pick Toni.” he scoffed, clenching his jaw, refusing to meet her gaze.

Natalie felt a sting in her stomach. _Of course he would pick Toni. She’s a girl and they’re best friends. It doesn’t mean anything. Right?_ Taking a deep breath, she faked a smile and looked at Fangs. “Sorry Fangs, but I’m gonna have to pick Toni as well.”

“Hell yes!” Toni shouted before bursting out in laughter, a proud smile on her face. “In your face, asshole.”

Fangs narrowed his eyes, shifting between Natalie and Sweet Pea. ”Traitors.”

Natalie let out a small laugh, sneaking a glance at Sweet Pea, who was staring straight in front of him, his body still tense. Toni’s laughter stopped as she noticed her friend’s sudden shift in behaviour and gave Natalie a confused look and shrugged. An uncomfortable silence fell over the group and Fangs didn’t hesitate telling a lame joke to try and lighten the mood. Natalie looked at Sweet Pea concerned, and when he still wouldn’t meet her eyes, she let out a small sigh.

“I better get going guys,” she stood up and faked a smile as she grabbed her bag. “I had a good time, it was lovely to meet you.” Toni and Fangs both stood up to give her a hug while Sweet Pea sat still, barely acknowledging her. “Talk to you later, Pea.” she turned to Sweet Pea and placed her hand on his shoulder, squeezing it gently.

“Yeah, see you around.” he muttered.

_See you around?_

* * *

 

“You Pussycats are the _pearls_ before the swine of Riverdale.” Nick St. Clair exclaimed, a smug smirk on his face. “You all have to come to the party I’m hosting tonight. In your honour! Let’s say… 10 o’clock? My hotel room at the Five Seasons?”

Natalie rolled her eyes at the giggle that escaped Josie’s mouth. She sighed and pulled out her phone for the thousandth time that day, to see if Sweet Pea had replied. She had tried calling him several times since their weird goodbye four days ago, and left a billion text messages, but still there was nothing from his end. The constant pressure from her parents over the upcoming event was stressing her out, and the only person she wanted to talk to about it, was ignoring her calls.

“Did somebody say party?” Natalie’s eyes shot up to see Cheryl appear in the doorway, a flirtatious look on her face. “Hi there, I’m Riverdale resident it-girl. Cheryl Blossom.”

Veronica took a seat between Natalie and Archie, rolling her eyes. Cheryl and Nick continued to flirt and Natalie couldn’t even bother listen to what they were saying. Why wasn’t Sweet Pea answering her? Her thoughts went over to the last time she saw him, and the more she thought about it, the more distressed she became. Everything had been perfectly fine. They were having fun, she got along with his friends, and then suddenly, he had become so distant.

“I expect to see you tonight, Nat.” Nick suddenly took her hand and leaned down to plant a kiss on her cheek.

Natalie was taken by surprise and looked at Veronica hesitantly. When her friend gave her a reassuring smile and nodded, she turned to Nick and faked a smile. “Of course, I wouldn’t miss it.”

“Great! I’ll see you ladies tonight.” he winked and turned to leave.

* * *

“Gal?” Archie asked, confused.

“Gadot. Keep up, Archie.” Cheryl spat back.

Natalie was sitting next to Betty who shot Kevin an amused look. Natalie had tried her best all night to forget about Sweet Pea and his weird behaviour, but somehow, it was all she could think about. Desperately wanting to distract herself, she stood up and walked to the kitchen to fill up her drink. From the living room, she heard Nick offer the crowd some Jingle Jangle, that apparently Reggie had hooked him up with. Turning her head, she noticed Archie looking displeased at Nick while Veronica took a straw from Nick’s hand.

“What? Every other night it’s burgers and milkshakes. Can’t we just… cut loose and pretend that we’re normal for once?” Veronica scoffed.

Natalie walked back to the living room and all of her friends already had a straw in their hands, except Betty. “Nat? Care to join?” Veronica smiled, offering her a straw. Natalie hesitated, looking at Betty who furrowed her brows, before grabbing the straw and smiling. _She could use a distraction._

She quickly downed the powdery drug and sat down in the couch next to Kevin and Cheryl. It only took a few minutes to kick in. The music vibrated through her skin and for a moment, it was the only thing she cared about. She felt someone grab her arm and suddenly she was on the middle of the floor, swaying her hips to the beat of the music next to Josie and Valerie.

“Come on, Betty.” she heard Veronica say suddenly. “Don’t be such a wallflower. You’re boyfriend-less for a night, have some fun.”

Natalie turned around to see Veronica taking Betty’s hands. “Like you, you mean?” Betty hissed, pulling her hands back. “I was going to say you’re making a fool out of yourself, just acting like some privileged, shallow, airhead party girl.”

“Excuse me?” Veronica scoffed.

“Yeah, I mean, it’s all just recycled banter… and plunging necklines, and throwing shade to distract us all from the fact that there’s really nothing going on underneath.”

 _What the hell?_ Natalie took Kevin’s hand and shot him a bewildered look.

“Betty, what the hell are you saying?” Archie took a step forward.

“What we’re all thinking!” Betty blurted out, “That the only reason Veronica hangs out with us is circumstance. She’s not our friend. The minute someone from her trashy past shows up, she starts using us for drugs, or music, or distraction. And why should we be surprised? Like father, like daughter, right?”

Natalie’s eyes widened. She couldn’t believe her friend, it was so unlike her. _Why is everyone acting like fucking idiots these days_. Before she could blink, Betty was storming out of the hotel room, leaving the group baffled. The tension in the room pulled Natalie back from any intoxication she’d felt just a few minutes before, leaving her feeling hollow and miserable.

She left the Five Seasons not long after Betty’s scene. Kevin had offered to walk her home, and since he lived in the same direction, she had to accept. All she wanted was just to be alone, but having some company might help her feel better. The whole thing with Sweet Pea came flushing over her, and she couldn’t keep the tears from forming in her eyes. Kevin must’ve noticed, his arm locking with hers as he gave her a soft smile.

“What’s going on Nat? You’ve been acting really...” he trailed off.

“Weird? Yeah. I feel weird.” she forced a laugh. “It’s just...”

“Hey, you can tell me anything, you know that right?” Kevin halted to a stop, placing his hands on her shoulders.

“Sweet Pea hasn’t been returning any of my calls the past few days. I don’t know what happened, everything was fine on Tuesday.” she blurted out, a stray tear falling down her cheek.

“Oh, girl. I’m sorry.” Kevin pulled her in a hug and a small sob escaped Natalie’s mouth. “There must be a reason. Or maybe he’s just a dick.”

“That’s comforting.” she laughed, pulling away and brushing off the tears.

“Maybe you can talk to Toni? Isn’t she like his best friend or something?” Kevin offered.

“Maybe… I’ll be fine. Just everything kinda flushing over me right now, I guess.” she smiled and continued walking. “Thanks, Kev.”

They walked down the street and Kevin gave her a hug before heading off further into town, leaving her confused and alone outside her house. All the lights were off, which meant her parents were thankfully asleep.

Picking up her phone, she dialed Sweet Pea’s phone number and pressed the phone against her ear. After a few seconds, the call was rejected. A tear fell down her cheek, but she quickly got herself together and took a deep breath, before entering her house and quietly making it up to her room. Swallowing, she took off her clothes and laid down in her bed. She felt a slight dizziness, her breathing becoming heavier as the ceiling above her moved in slow circles. The jingle jangle was not completely worn off, she guessed. She forced her eyes shut, and somehow that only made it worse.

She quickly sat up and took a few deep breaths, looking at her phone nervously. _Fuck it._

**Why won’t you talk to me? Did i do something? If i did, please tell me.**

Natalie clenched her phone in her hand, anxiously waiting for any kind of reply, but the more time that passed, her hopes of getting a reply slowly diminished. Without thinking, she unlocked her phone and stared at her screen, the familiar bubble with three dots appearing. _Shit. He's typing._ She felt her heart beating faster as the bubble stayed on the screen for a few seconds, her thoughts racing as she wondered what he was going to say. Suddenly, the bubble disappeared. She froze, staring at the screen, praying that a message would appear, her heart shattering when she realized the reply would never come.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for angst, it had to happen though... right? Thanks everyone for being super supportive ily


	7. Helplessness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Pea’s not answering either...” Like that’s a shocker. “We could go to Southside High?” she suggested, swallowing the lump in her throat as she thought of what could happen if she didn’t make it there in time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for a short chapter!!! I'll do my best to get the next chapter uploaded asap :) Thanks to everyone who has supported and appreciated this story! Really means a lot x   
> Find me on tumblr at @southsidepea or @nataliecaves

Natalie’s alarm began blaring at 9 am. She could barely open her eyes, her head pounding and her mouth dry after last night’s party. Groaning, she slowly sat up and reached for her phone. She had a few unread messages, but to her disappointment, none of them were from Sweet Pea. 

Today was the day of the open-house, and she was expected look flawless. Her parents had made it clear how important today was, since many of their business associates were attending, and they wanted Natalie to start learning about and involving herself in that part of their lives. She stood up lazily and made her way to the bathroom. Stepping into the shower, she sighed as the warm water flowed over her skin. As she washed her hair, her mind wandered to Sweet Pea, going over every possible explanation of why he was acting like this.

“Natalie!” a sudden knock on the door startled her. “We leave in an hour, I left your dress on your bed!” her mother announced. 

She quickly got out and dried her hair, fixing her locks into perfect curls before applying her makeup. Going back to her bedroom, she picked up the baby blue dress her mother had laid out for her and put it on. She made her way to the mirror and admired the dress, the long sleeve lace top and knee-length plissé skirt hugged her features perfectly. When she had finished making sure she looked decent enough, she rushed down the stairs where her parents were ready with breakfast.

“Now, remember what I told you,” her father began as soon as she sat down at the table.

“Smile, listen to what they have to say, smile. I got it, dad.” Natalie muttered, taking a bite of her toast. All she wanted was for this day to be over as quickly as possible.

Sadly, Natalie felt like she was at the open-house for  _ decades. _ She was forced to follow her parents around, faking a smile as they indulged in conversations with several investors. Whenever she spotted Veronica, she was stuck in a similar situation with her parents. The difference was that Veronica actually seemed to enjoy this, while Natalie despised it.

The  _ only _ thing that Natalie found amusing during the day, was the shock and confusion that filled the air the moment Alice Cooper walked in. She strutted through the crowd wearing an orange snake-skin jumpsuit and a snake necklace, rolling her eyes at the stares she got. Natalie saw the article Betty had published about Alice’s past, and while it was of course shocking that Riverdale’s very own Alice Cooper had been a Serpent once, it irritated her that the people in this town really cared that much about it. It just showed how fake a portion of the town really was.

When other guests started to leave, Natalie immediately “reminded” her parents that she had critically important homework, and hurried back home. Exhausted, she sat down in her bed and scrolled through her phone.  _ Still nothing.  _ Sighing, she decided to text Jughead even though she doubted it would give her any consolation.

**Hey, do you know whats going on with sp?**

She stared at the screen, growing more impatient with each second. Suddenly, the phone vibrated, and she let out a relieved sigh.

**Not really. He’s been acting bitter, but I mean, he’s always bitter.**

**\- Jughead**

_ Well, that tells me nothing.  _ Locking her phone, she placed it on her nightstand and wrapped her arms around her knees. She knew she had to just let it go and move on, but something kept telling her she shouldn’t. There had to be a reason he was pushing her away. She couldn’t leave it alone without an explanation. She wouldn’t.

* * *

 

“Riverdale’s best and brightest huh?” Alice Cooper laid a tray full of teacups on the sofa table. 

It was a Monday morning and Natalie along with her friends had all been called out of class after someone had ratted out to their parents what had happened at Nick’s party last Friday. Well, everyone except Cheryl, who hadn’t showed up at school, probably still distressed after what Nick did to her at the open-house. Natalie’s mother, Scarlet, was standing next to Alice with her arms crossed, a disappointed look on her face. 

“Alice… thank you for hosting.”

“Of course, Mayor McCoy. When I heard what happened at Nick’s party, I decided that we should come together to deal with this motley crew of liars, dope fiends and fornicators. Except for my Betty, who was smart enough to leave the party before it descended into a bacchanalian free-for-all.” Alice continued. 

Natalie rolled her eyes, earning a deathly stare from her mother. She never should’ve taken the jingle-jangle, she knew that, but the fact that she was being held up in a room with a bunch of adults scolding her, made her blood boil. Was this really the way to deal with a few teenagers being drunk and stupid? 

Back in Lexington, things had been different. Every weekend, one of her classmate’s threw a party, filled with drugs and alcohol, and no parent seemed to care. If she wasn’t at a party, she was at a club that one of her friend’s parents owned. Natalie knew that might not be the norm, here in Riverdale, but she was most confused by her mother’s sudden change of behaviour. She was acting like she actually cared, when that had never been the case.

Veronica scoffed next to her and leaned closer to Archie. “Great. Here we go. Saint Betty and Succubus Veronica.” she whispered, ignoring the comments from the other parents. “You know, I might’ve taken jingle-jangle, but she’s the one that had a psychotic break.”

“Cut her some slack Veronica, she just broke up with Jughead.” Archie replied.

_ Betty and Jughead broke up? _

“Hashtag Bughead is no more and Betty didn’t tell me?” she heard Kevin mutter in her ear and before she could answer, Alice cleared her throat, causing the teenagers to go back to being silent.

Natalie clenched her jaw as she listened to the parents argue about why the drug had been there, and when Reggie admitted he’d gotten it from some gang member from the Southside, it was instantly blamed on the Serpents. Veronica started explaining that it was Nick that asked Reggie to get the drug and pushed it on the rest of the group, mentioning that it was also him that had drugged Cheryl at the open-house. When Josie admitted she took the drug as well, it was like something in Mayor McCoy snapped. Her eyes widened, and Natalie could see the rage and hatred on her face as she stood up.

“From this moment on, bringing the Southside under control is my number one priority as mayor. If it means razing it to the ground or arresting every single Serpent in sight, starting at that high school, so be it.” 

Natalie’s head shot up, panic flashing over her face.  _ No. No, this can’t happen. _ Her eyes flickered over to Archie and Betty, who were both sharing a knowing look, and Natalie knew exactly what it meant.  _ Jughead.  _ Burying her face in her hands, she let out a deep breath.  _ Sweet Pea. _

Mayor McCoy stormed out with Josie following at her heels, and soon Natalie was walking towards the car next to her mother, who still wouldn’t look at her. _ I have to warn him. _ She picked up her phone, and typed in Sweet Pea’s number, hoping he would answer. Just as she thought, the call was rejected after a few seconds. Sighing, she looked over her shoulder and saw Archie standing, phone in hand, a worried look on his face.

“Mother, I know I fucked up, but I need to talk to Archie,” she reached for her mother’s hand, halting to a stop.

Scarlet rolled her eyes, breathing harshly through her nose before taking a deep breath and smiling. “If you are not home by dinner, you are in  _ big _ trouble, young lady.” 

“I promise, thank you. See you later.” Natalie said relieved, before turning around and rushing over to Archie.

“Natalie? What’s up?” he asked, confused.

“What the mayor said. I know you basically hate him, but I can’t have Sweet Pea arrested.” she muttered, “Jughead’s there, we can’t let them arrest him either.”

Archie sighed, putting his phone back to his pocket. “Jughead’s not answering.”

“Pea’s not answering either...”  _ Like that’s a shocker. _ “We could go to Southside High?” she suggested, swallowing the lump in her throat as she thought of what could happen if she didn’t make it there in time.

“Alright, let’s go.” he simply said, grabbing her hand and storming down the street.

* * *

 

 

They entered Southside High after thirty minutes, students giving them wary looks as they rushed through the hallways, looking for any sign of Jughead or Sweet Pea. Archie quickly grabbed his phone and typed in a message that Natalie figured was for Jughead. A moment later, she noticed him exiting a classroom a few feet away, a bewildered look on his face as he noticed the two of them.

“Jug. Jug!” Archie ran over to him, “We gotta go, right now.”

Natalie rushed over to them, looking frantically around her for any sign of Sweet Pea.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Jughead said bitterly. “Betty asked you to throw some salt in the wound?”

“Mayor McCoy is about to raid Southside High. We gotta get you out of here right now, come on!” Archie explained and Jughead’s eyes widened.

“Jughead. Where is Sweet Pea?” Natalie panted, still looking around hoping to spot him.

“I- I don’t know,” he stuttered.

“We have to go,  _ now. _ ” Archie suddenly snapped, grabbing both their arms and dragging them towards the exit.

The doors to the school suddenly burst open, Mayor McCoy and Sheriff Keller along with other police officers barging in, pointing at anyone wearing a leather jacket. Natalie’s face fell.  _ Where is he?  _ It was as if time slowed down. Archie’s hand was still firmly placed around her upper arm, pulling her along towards the other exit, Jughead’s terrified expression planted on his face. Determined to find Sweet Pea, she ripped herself loose from Archie’s grip, searching every face around her. “Toni?!” she heard Jughead shout behind her and the hallway erupted to chaos. Students were pushing others out of their way, fixated on getting out without exactly knowing what was happening.

“You wanna help her?! You can’t do that behind bars!” Archie yelled, grabbing Jughead’s jacket and pulling him back. “You too Natalie,  _ let’s go! _ ”

Suddenly, she froze. A police officer was slamming him against the lockers, trying to force his hands behind his back. Sweet Pea let out a growl, banging his hand against the locker before the officer successfully grabbed it and placing handcuffs on him. For a split second, his eyes met hers. She saw all anger drain from his face, only to be replaced by worry and guilt. As she watched him being dragged away, she felt tears forming in her eyes, tears that flowed down her cheeks as she turned around and reached the exit.


	8. Anguish

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two motorcycles approached, parking a few feet away. Fangs and Toni got off of one bike, and on the other, was Sweet Pea. He didn’t seem to have noticed her yet. He removed his helmet, revealing his messy black hair, using one hand to run his fingers through it. He had a smirk on his face, his eyes dark but soft as he looked around. Damn him. He looked happy. At least he did until his eyes found hers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ANGST I’M SORRY!!! Thanks to the lovely Morgan (@youbuildmeupbeliever) for editing and being amazing and everyone that has been supportive i love you guys xx   
> Let me know what you think! I’ve been super busy (like always) so hopefully I can finish next chapter before the weekend, it’ll probably be a bit longer than usual :)

“Where do you think you’re going?” 

Natalie stopped in the middle of the stairs, furrowing her brow at her mother and clutching her school bag tightly. Scarlet Caves stood by the door with her arms crossed and a firm expression on her face. “School?” Natalie replied, confused.

Scarlet shook her head and sighed. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to be surrounded by these…  _ teenagers _ . They’re obviously a bad influence and I don’t want you near any of it!” she stated firmly. Natalie examined her mother’s face. She wasn’t used to being strict with Natalie, and it was obvious that she was struggling with it. 

“They’re my friends, mother. It’s not like they forced me to do anything.” Natalie shrugged, but Scarlet wouldn’t have it.

“Those  _ friends _ of yours are obviously mixed up in  _ drugs _ and  _ gangs.  _ If they didn’t force you, it just shows the influence they have on you for just being around them.” Scarlet sighed. “Oh, and poor Veronica. I can’t believe she got mixed up in this as well.”

Of course she thought Veronica was just an unfortunate victim in this situation. Scarlet looked at Natalie and Veronica like they were the perfect children who would never do anything that might disappoint their parents. Her mother looked at every teenager coming from a rich successful family like that. If only she knew that it was mostly  _ those _ kids that were mixed up in drugs or other “frowned upon” doings. They were just usually better at hiding it from their parents.

“You can’t keep me away from school!” Natalie hissed, strutting down the stairs and stopping in front of her mother with her head held high. “Now I’m going to be late. Would you please let me leave?” 

Scarlet’s eyes twitched, as if she was trying so hard not to break under the pressure. Natalie almost felt bad for her. She wasn’t used to defying her but she would not be kept from going to school and see her friends. To be honest, Natalie had little interest in going to school and pretending everything was fine. But there was nothing Natalie could imagine being worse than being locked away in her room, isolated from everything but her feelings.

Natalie glared at her mother bitterly until she finally sighed and stepped to the side, allowing Natalie to leave. “Thank you,” Natalie mumbled before disappearing through the door.

The day passed by slowly. Natalie was too distraught to pay attention to class or the conversations between her friends at lunch. It had been two days since Natalie had watched Sweet Pea being dragged away by the police. She hadn’t heard a single word from him, or anyone for that matter about what had happened afterwards. Jughead was suddenly a Serpent and didn’t seem to want to talk to anyone after what happened with him and Betty. She hadn’t seen much of Betty or Veronica, but Natalie figured they must’ve resolved things after Betty’s outburst at Nick’s party. Kevin was still the same old cheerful Kevin, and she was thankful for that. But after everything, the only one she really wanted to talk to was the one ignoring her calls.

When her last class was finally dismissed, Natalie stashed her books in her locker and slammed the door closed. She let out a frustrated sigh after checking her phone and seeing three messages from her mother. School hadn’t been out for five minutes before she was demanding to know where she was and when she would be home. Grabbing her bag, she quickly started making her way to the exit.

“Nat, wait!” a hand suddenly grabbed her shoulder. Turning around, she noticed Kevin standing next to her. 

“What’s going on?” she asked, furrowing her brow.

“There’s going to be a drag race later, Serpents versus Ghoulies.” he explained, grinning. 

“I’ll pass.” she said, rolling her eyes. As much as she didn’t want to go home, she wasn’t in the mood for socializing.  _ I guess that means they’re not in jail anymore. _

“Come  _ on! _ It’ll be fun.” Kevin frowned, taking her hands into his. “We need to support Archie and Jughead. And besides, maybe  _ he _ will be there?” he continued, a hint of hope in his voice.

Natalie scoffed. She was relieved to hear that the Serpents were okay but she was furious with Sweet Pea for ignoring her and not even bothering to reply with a simple text message to let her know he was alright. She wasn’t even sure if she wanted to see him. Well, maybe if she was being honest with herself, she could admit that she did really want to see him. She’d been miserable the past few days, a mixture of sadness and anger stewing within her. All she wanted was an explanation. It was obvious that he didn’t want to have anything to do with her but to her, it still made no sense.

She pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes at Kevin, who was still looking at her like an excited three-year-old. “Fine.” she groaned, and Kevin let out a satisfied laugh. “But  _ only _ because of Archie and Jughead.”

Kevin rolled his eyes and locked his arm with hers, “Whatever you say, sweetie.”

Natalie picked up her phone and typed a text to her mother, telling her she was going to Veronica’s to study. As long as Veronica was involved, her mother didn’t seem to care what they were doing. “Where to?” she asked Kevin as they walked out of the school.

“Veronica’s.”

* * *

 

“Wait. So the St. Clair’s basically paid Cheryl’s mother so she wouldn’t press charges?” Natalie asked Veronica, who nodded. 

It didn’t come as a surprise to Natalie. This is what rich people did. They went about life, manipulating and covering up any scandal a member of the family might be a part of, paying people to keep silent so their reputation was unscathed. She was certain her parents had done similar things, and Veronica’s family as well. That did not mean she approved of it. In fact, she despised it. This was one of the reasons she didn’t want to be a part of her family’s world. A world of lies and masks.

She felt bad for Cheryl. Although Natalie’s parents might not be perfect, she knew that if anyone would harm her, they would never accept payment to push it aside. Just like the St. Clair’s wouldn’t if the tables were turned for their precious Nicholas.

Veronica’s phone vibrated suddenly and she stood up. “Reggie is here to pick us up.” she announced, “Got everything?”

“Yeah, let’s go”

Natalie followed Veronica and Kevin down the stairs and out the door to see Reggie’s car parked out front. Stepping into the backseat, she suddenly felt nervous, her muscles tensing and her breathing shortening as her thoughts wandered to Sweet Pea. She was going there to support her friends.  _ He was her friend. _

_ Was. _

Taking a deep breath, she forced a smile and joined in on the laughter of her friends. It didn’t take them long to drive to where the race was going to be. Several cars and motorcycles were already parked by the edges of the road, Serpents and Northsiders on one side, Ghoulies on the other. They parked right next to a group of Serpents, leaning up against their motorcycle. Natalie scanned the crowd as she stepped out of the car, and didn’t recognise any of the Serpents.

_ He’s not here. Yet. _ she thought to herself, exhaling deeply. Betty and Cheryl were already there, as were Archie and Jughead. Natalie leaned against Reggie’s car next to Kevin, crossing her arms as she watched the Ghoulies, tension in the air between the two sides. More people arrived and she felt her jaw clench with every car or motorcycle that drove past her. Finally, she noticed them.

Two motorcycles approached, parking a few feet away. Fangs and Toni got off of one bike, and on the other, was Sweet Pea. He didn’t seem to have noticed her yet. He removed his helmet, revealing his messy black hair, using one hand to run his fingers through it. He had a smirk on his face, his eyes dark but soft as he looked around.  _ Damn him.  _ He looked happy. At least he did until his eyes found hers.

The smirk washed off his face, a hint of panic rushing to his eyes. Natalie felt her hands clenching into fists, all the hurt and anger washing over her. Kevin grabbed her arm gently and whispered warningly, “Natalie… Don’t.”

She had to confront him. This might be her only chance. There was no way she could just ignore him after everything that had happened. Giving Kevin a poisonous look, she ripped away from his grasp and stormed over to Sweet Pea. Toni and Fangs shared a knowing look and quickly took a step back, leaving Sweet Pea alone.

“What the fuck, Pea?!” Natalie shouted, punching him harshly on the arm. “Why haven’t you returned any of my calls?! Do you know how worried I’ve been?”

All of the confusion and anger she had been building up the past few days burst out all at once. She felt tears forming in her eyes as he said nothing, only looking at the ground with a guilty expression on his face. That only made the anger that pulsed through her veins burn hotter.

“Are you fucking  _ serious? _ ” she growled, raising her right hand to slap him, a tear falling down her cheek. Before her palm hit the side of his face, he quickly grabbed her forearm to keep her in place. His fingers tightened firmly around it, his jaw clenching as he looked down at her.

“Natalie. Stop it.” he hissed as he grabbed her other hand, struggling to keep her from wriggling loose and hitting him again. “ _Stop._ _It.”_

She knew people were looking at them but she didn’t care. She continued to struggle with her hands, giving up as she looked up at him and let out a silent sob. “Why won’t you talk to me?” she whimpered. His jaw was clenched and his lips pursed in a straight line, but his eyes had a hint of vulnerability in them. Almost as if he was trying to be angry, but struggled to keep up the facade.

He then took a deep breath and suddenly his eyes changed. There was no longer vulnerability, only coldness and a steely gaze. He raised his head high and straightened his posture so he towered over her. He glared down at her, his eyes narrowing as he leaned his face closer to hers.

“Go back to your friends,” he hissed through gritted teeth, his voice stinging like venom. For the first time ever, she was afraid of Sweet Pea. The boy she thought she knew was gone. She looked at him in disbelief and took a step back. He slowly let go of her arms, the corners of his mouth curling up in a mocking grin. “Northsider  _ slut. _ ”

Natalie’s heart broke instantly. She heard Toni gasp beside them but he paid her no mind. His eyes still fixated on her, studying her reaction. The tears were now flowing down her face. She raised her trembling hand up to the dog tag around her neck and ripped it off. Her eyes moved to look at the necklace in her hand before she angrily threw it at him, hitting the middle of his chest.

Sweet Pea’s face changed quickly, gone was the smirk on his face. His lips formed a straight line, and his jaw was clenched. He’d caught the dog tag and looked down at it for a moment before returning his gaze to Natalie. His eyes were almost apologetic, but not a word came out of his mouth.

Natalie sniffed, wiping away the tears on her face and took a step closer. “ _ Fuck you,  _ SP.” she snarled with venom, turning on her heels and storming away.


	9. Resolution

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Why are you here?” he asked suddenly, letting go of her hand and turning around.
> 
> “Because...” Natalie replied, her voice breaking, “I just don’t understand what the fuck happened, Pea.”
> 
> He winced, and she could see that he was tearing up. “I don’t want to be with you, Natalie. This was never going to work. You need to get over it.” he hissed.
> 
> “No. I don’t believe you,” she said, firmly. He furrowed his brows and glared at her. 
> 
> “Too bad, it’s the truth.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s a looong chapter to make up for the last shorter chapters and the angst! I hope you guys like it! Special thanks to Morgan for being super supportive and keeping me motivated to write this <3 
> 
> I think this is going to be the last chapter i’m posting for a few weeks since i’m going to barcelona and just busy with school in general. 
> 
> Leave a comment to let me know what you think! <3

Natalie was lying on her bed, staring up at the ceiling when her alarm went off. She took a deep breath, squeezing her eyes closed before picking up her phone and turning the alarm off. _You can do this_ , she thought and slowly got up from the bed. She hadn’t been able to sleep much since her ‘scene’ with Sweet Pea. Natalie’s mother had been _more_ than happy to let her stay at home for a few days if it meant keeping her away from her friends, who she _still_ thought were bad influence.

Today had been exactly a week since the drag race and Natalie had barely left the house. She mostly stayed in her bedroom, listening to music and writing meaningless things into her notebook. Veronica and Kevin texted her every day and she even received a few texts from Betty and Archie, making sure she was alright.

Natalie rubbed her eyes and yawned, making her way to the bathroom. She wanted nothing more than to hide under her blankets for another week, but today she had to pull herself together and go to school. She would not be the heartbroken girl that held onto hope and cried over a boy that she barely knew. Today it was time to let go.

She took a quick shower, curled her hair and put on some makeup. After making her way to her closet and standing there for a good ten minutes, she finally picked a pastel blue skater dress with a white collar and paired it with a black coat. Stepping in front of the mirror, she took one last look at herself and sighed, _You can do this_.

When Natalie entered the kitchen downstairs, the first thing she heard was a gasp leaving her mother’s lips, “Happy birthday my dearest Natalie!” Scarlet almost cried out, rushing over to her and pulled her in a tight hug.

Today was Natalie’s seventeenth birthday. She returned her mother’s hug and rolled her eyes, smiling, “Thank you, mother.”

“Happy birthday, kiddo,” she heard her father say from where he was sitting by the kitchen table, giving her a quick wink before returning his attention to the news paper.

“I wasn’t expecting you to be up this early so I haven’t made any breakfast yet,” Scarlet pulled away and frowned before turning around and hurrying up to the stove.

“No, mother, it’s fine,” Natalie smiled, “I’ll just grab something at school.”

Scarlet’s head shot towards her, a concerned look on her face, “You’re going to school?” she asked nervously. “Are you sure that is a good idea?”

“Yeah, I can’t be locked in here by myself on my birthday, now can I?” Natalie replied with a smirk, walking up to her father to give him a kiss on the cheek. “Love you, see you later!” she called over her shoulder before making her way to the door, ignoring the look of disappointment in her mother’s eyes.

* * *

Natalie’s shoulders were tense as she entered Riverdale High. She looked nervously around as she made her way to her locker. She could’ve swore every single eye was on her as she walked through the hallways. She swallowed and opened her locker, trying to ignore the hollow feeling inside her.

“Natalie!” she heard someone shriek a few feet away. Turning around, she saw Veronica, Betty and Kevin rushing towards her, and sighed in relief. “Happy birthday dear! It’s so good to see you!”

“It’s good to see you too,” Natalie smiled softly.

Veronica immediately insisted that she would join her and Betty after school for some ‘girl stuff’ before meeting the guys at Pop’s for dinner. Kevin instantly began to fill her in on what she had missed while she was away. After Betty had exposed the Sugarman and come clean about her ‘relationship’ with the Black Hood, things seemed to be going back to normal. Betty and Jughead were finally back together, Betty and Veronica were back to being best friends.

The only thing that seemed off was Natalie.

She was glad she was finally able to see her friends but no matter how hard she tried, she could still feel the dull ache in her stomach, constantly reminding her of the boy who broke her heart. Even though she felt horrible on the inside, she had become a master at looking ecstatic on the outside. Who knows? Maybe if she convinced herself she was happy, she would be. And so, she laughed at her friends’ jokes, smiled at their comments and joined in on their conversations. To be honest, this was the closest she’d felt to being happy in weeks.

The day went by quickly. After school, Natalie went with Veronica and Betty to the Pembrooke. She thought it was good to finally be able to talk to her friends but no one ever mentioned what had happened at the race. Natalie was thankful for that. She’d spent the past week thinking about it and she appreciated anything that could distract her from it.

When it was finally time to meet Kevin, Archie and Jughead, the girls made their way to Pop’s. The boys were already there, sitting in their regular booth in the back, smiles appeared on their faces as they noticed them enter.

“Happy birthday!” the three boys shouted, causing Natalie to smile sheepishly as she sat down next to Kevin.

The whole group ordered milkshakes, except Jughead, who went for a burger and fries, as well as a milkshake. When the food came, Veronica suddenly brought out a small package, wrapped in silver and handed it to Natalie.

“This is from me and Archie. Happy birthday!” she said, smiling.

Natalie grinned and carefully opened the gift, gasping as saw what it was. Inside the box were two tickets to see Arctic Monkeys next month, Natalie’s favourite band.

“Thank you so much! I can’t believe it!” she gushed, squeezing Veronica’s hand.

Natalie had wanted to buy tickets to the concert for her and Sweet Pea, before everything went to shit. She wondered who she would bring with her now that she had tickets. She looked around at her friends. Archie’s hand was around Veronica’s shoulder, her hand on his thigh, and Betty was clutching Jughead’s hand tightly, the two of them sneaking loving looks at each other.

 _I’ll bring Kevin_.

After Natalie thanked Veronica and Archie again, the others handed her their own gifts. Kevin gave her a gift card for Riverdale’s record shop, and Betty and Jughead gave her a beautiful notebook. Natalie was thankful they were her friends. She had only known them for a few months and she already felt like they were the best friends she could ever have.

“It’s getting late, we should get going,” Veronica suddenly announced, looking at Archie. He instantly nodded and the rest of the group started grabbing their things together.

It was getting late, Natalie knew, but the thought of going back home made her muscles tense. _You just had a great time with your friends, you can handle going home_. She faked a smile and gathered her stuff. She examined her friends’ faces, all of them smiling and happy. Except Jughead’s. His eyes were watching her, concern written all over his face. Out of everyone, Jughead seemed to be the only one that could see right through her. Natalie gave him a sad smile before they stood up and made their way outside.

“Thank you guys so much for tonight, I really appreciate it,” Natalie said solemnly, giving Archie and Veronica a hug.

“I’m just glad you’re back, we missed you!” Veronica replied, “Have a good night you guys, let’s go Archiekins.” She smiled and locked her arm with Archie’s before walking away.

Kevin gave her a quick hug and finally, she was left with Jughead and Betty. “Alright, I should get going. Thanks for tonight,” Natalie forced a smile.

“Wait, I’ll walk with you. It’s on the way to the trailer park anyways,” Jughead said, turning to Betty and whispering something in her ear before giving her a kiss. Natalie felt relieved. Even though it was only a few minute walk to her house, she was glad to have company for a little bit longer.

Betty gave him a smile and turned to Natalie. “Happy birthday again, see you tomorrow?” she asked softly before giving her a hug.

“Thanks, see you tomorrow.”

Betty gave Jughead a quick peck on the lips, turning back to Natalie and raising her hand up to wave, a big smile plastered on her lips before turning around to leave. Jughead smiled softly at Natalie and started walking down the street, Natalie following close behind.

The pair walked side by side in silence, until Jughead suddenly spoke up. “How you holding up?”

Natalie looked at him in surprise, hesitantly. “I’ve been better,” she forced a smile and sighed.

Jughead seemed to wince at her response. He turned to look in front of him, deep in thought, a few moments passing before he replied. “I know it’s maybe not my place to ask...” he started, causing Natalie to shoot him a suspicious look. “But what’s going on with you and Sweet Pea?”

“Nothing,” Natalie scoffed, looking away. “He made that perfectly clear.”

Jughead sighed, “Yeah, I don’t know about that. He’s been acting really weird since you went to the quarry with him, Toni and Fangs.”

Natalie’s thoughts trailed back to that time. How happy Sweet Pea was to see her. How his hand was wrapped around her the whole time, keeping her close to him. Until all of the sudden he had pushed her away. She took a deep breath, clenching her jaw as she kept walking, Jughead silent beside her, sighing.

“Toni told me what happened. It just… it doesn’t seem like him” Jughead said.

“Yeah, how should I know? He’s obviously not who I thought he was,” Natalie snarled, halting to a stop.

Jughead stopped and turned to her. “I saw what happened at the race,” he sighed. “It was pretty obvious he felt miserable. He’s usually the one making snarky comments and mocking _everyone_ , but after you stormed off, he barely opened his mouth.”

“Good to know he might have a tiny piece of soul left after all.” Natalie scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

“No, Natalie. You don’t get it,” Jughead said, placing one hand on her shoulder. “I’m pretty sure he thinks he’s protecting you.”

“And how the fuck would that be protecting me?!” she spat bitterly and started walking down the street.

“Hey, Betty pushed me away because she thought she was protecting me from the Black Hood. People do stupid shit. Maybe you should give him a chance,” he offered, following close behind her.

“I gave him a chance, Jughead. It didn’t exactly end well.” she muttered, refusing to meet his eyes.

She heard Jughead sigh as they stopped outside of her house. She turned to face him, and saw him reach for something in his bag, pulling out a small gift and handing to her. She furrowed her brows and looked at him suspiciously before accepting it. It was a small box, badly wrapped in brown paper.

She looked up at Jughead, who gave her a hopeful smile. “Hey, I’m just saying. He’s used to people giving up on him,” he gently squeezed her shoulder before turning to walk towards the Southside. “Maybe all he needs is some reassurance!” she heard him call over his shoulder before he disappeared.

Natalie stood outside her house in confusion, clutching the small box in her hand. Hesitantly, she ripped the packaging off and opened the box. Inside was Sweet Pea’s dog tag. Gently placed on top of it was a note that said ‘Happy birthday’, scribbled in a messy handwriting. She felt the tears welling up in her eyes, the familiar ache filling her stomach but even so, the corners of her mouth curled up in a soft smile. She let out a silent sob, picking up the necklace, running her thumb over the tag.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” she whispered to herself.

Natalie turned to look at her house. There were lights in her parents’ bedroom window but she knew they would’ve already called her if they were expecting her to be home yet. Sighing, her eyes moved to down the street where Jughead had disappeared. _One last chance_ , she thought, placing the necklace over her neck and walking towards the Southside.

Picking up her phone, she typed in Sweet Pea’s number and waited. Rejected. She wasn’t surprised. If what Jughead had said was true, she would have to confront him alone and insisting on getting under his facade. She didn’t know where she could find him since she didn’t know where he lived. From what she’d heard about the Serpents, her best (and only) option was to go to the Whyte Wyrm. She opened Google Maps and typed in the name of the Serpent bar, and found the directions. _Only a ten minute walk_.

A little while later, Natalie was standing outside a small bar. The sign was old and beat down, the walls were dirty and she could practically smell the cigarette smoke coming from inside. Around fifteen motorcycles were parked out front but there wasn’t a person in sight. Nervously, she slowly walked up the steps and pushed the door open.

She was hit by a wall of warmth and smoke, shouts and laughter. It was dimly lit, faces in the shadows turning to look at her as she entered. She swallowed, clenching her hands into fists, and walked towards the bar, ignoring the whispers and comments coming from around her. Wearing her pastel blue dress and high heeled boots, it was certain that she stood out from the crowd. At the bar stood a tall man, dressed in an old flannel shirt and a denim vest. His long hair was greasy, looking like it hadn’t been properly washed for weeks. His grey eyes examined her face, a hint of despise apparent on his face.

“Hi, uhm. Is SP around?” she asked quietly, swallowing nervously.

The tall man narrowed his eyes and leaned over the bar table. “Who?”

“Oh, uhm. Sweet Pea. Is he here?” Natalie asked again, this time a bit more confidently.

“Haven’t seen him,” he grunted, turning his attention back to the glasses he was wiping. When Natalie didn’t move, his eyes shot towards her, a bitter look on his face. “Now, I’d suggest you leave, sweetheart,” he spat, causing Natalie to flinch and take a step back.

“It’s okay, Tall Boy. I know her.” she heard Toni say next to her and grab her hand. “Come on.” she whispered and dragged her through the crowd, to a closed room in the back.

“Thanks.” Natalie muttered and sat down on one of the chairs.

“What are you doing here?” Toni scowled, standing over her with her arms crossed.

“I need to talk to Pea. He hasn’t been replying to any texts or calls so I came here,” Natalie explained.

Toni let out a sigh and sat down next to her. Natalie watched as she picked up her phone and typed a message, before shoving it back into her pocket. “He should be on his way now.” Toni gave her a smile and Natalie let out a deep breath. “Sorry for asking… but what exactly happened with you guys?”

“I’m not sure.” Natalie stated blankly.

Toni opened her mouth as if to say something but stayed silent. After a few minutes, she stood up from her chair. “Can I get you anything? Glass of water?”

“That would be good, thanks.” Natalie smiled.

Her mind was racing. What was she going to say to him? The last time she confronted him he called her a Northsider slut. Why would this time be any different? She buried her face in her palms and sighed. _Coming here was stupid_ , she thought and stood up. As she turned to leave, Toni came back with a glass of water.

“Are you leaving?” she asked, confused.

“I don’t know what I was thinking, coming here. I don’t want to be a bother, he’ll probably be glad if I just leave.” Natalie blurted out, giving Toni an apologetic smile before pushing past her to the door.

“Hey!” Toni grabbed her hand to stop her and whispered, “You’re too late. Good luck.”

Suddenly, the door was pushed open and someone barged in. Natalie flinched and her head shot towards Sweet Pea, who was towering over her. “Natalie,” he growled lowly, grabbing her upper arm firmly and dragging her out of the room. Natalie felt heart heart racing, her breathing becoming shorter. She didn’t know if she was scared or relieved.

He pulled her through the crowd and stormed out of the Whyte Wyrm, letting go of her hand as they stopped by the street. Thankfully, there was no one outside.

Sweet Pea looked terrible. There were dark rings under his eyes, his skin pale and his hair messier than usual. He breathed heavily through his nostrils, his jaw clenched, his shoulders tense.

“Sweet Pea. Talk to me.” Natalie whispered, taking a step closer to him.

Suddenly, he snapped. His face shot towards her, a furious expression on his face as he stormed towards her. “What the _hell_ were you thinking?!” he roared, his voice loud and angry.

Natalie was taken by surprise, her eyes widening at his sudden outburst. “Wha- what do you mean?” she stuttered, afraid.

“Going to the Southside and INTO THE FUCKING WYRM?! _Alone_?! Something could’ve happened to you!” he snarled, looking angrily into her eyes. Natalie was trembling, tears filling her eyes. His eyes turned softer and he took a step back, running his hand through his hair as he took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you. But you can’t go on and come here alone, it’s not safe for you,” he said.

“I can take care of myself, you know,” she countered, crossing her arms.

He turned to look at her and scoffed, clenching his fists, “Yeah, right.”

They stood there in silence, looking at each other. There was a hint of shame in Sweet Pea’s eyes. Natalie didn’t know what to make of it. Frowning, she slowly took a step closer to him and reached for his hand. He shut his eyes and sighed, his fingers wrapping around hers.

“Why are you here?” he asked suddenly, letting go of her hand and turning around.

“Because...” Natalie replied, her voice breaking, “I just don’t understand what the fuck happened, Pea.”

He winced, and she could see that he was tearing up. “I don’t want to be with you, Natalie. This was never going to work. You need to get over it.” he hissed.

“No. I don’t believe you,” she said, firmly. He furrowed his brows and glared at her.

“Too bad, it’s the truth.”

She took a deep breath, and stepped closer. “I’m not leaving until you tell me what’s _really_ going on.”

“Natalie...” he warned. “You need to leave.”

“Why are you ignoring me? Why won’t you talk to me?” she said angrily.

“Natalie.” he spat, clenching his fists in clear annoyance.

“Why?!” she yelled, placing both hands on his chest and pushing.

“Because I’m in love with you!” he shouted back in frustration and Natalie froze. He sighed at her expression, covering his face with his hands as he realized what he had said.

“That’s why I’ve been ignoring you.” he mumbled.

He started pacing back and forth, muttering something under his breath, nervously running his hand through his hair. “Fuck.” he hissed and angrily kicked a trash bin next to him, so hard that it fell down. Natalie finally found the will to move, and cautiously walked up to him.

“Hey,” she whispered, placing her arms around his neck. He took a deep breath, clenching his eyes shut, refusing to look at her. “Hey, look at me,” she said, louder this time, her hand moving to his cheek. At first, he kept his eyes closed, but then, he sighed and finally opened them to look at her. His expression changed from angry to sad. He frowned, examining her face. She felt the tears escaping her eyes and he reached his hand up to cup her face, his thumb wiping away a few stray tears.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, looking away, his eyes filled with guilt.

Natalie moved her hand to force him to face her again, and took a deep breath. “I love you too.”

His eyes widened and the guilt was washed away with relief. His arms wrapped around her and he pulled her closer so that she was pressed against his chest. Natalie sighed against him, her body relaxing from the warmth of his embrace. Her hands snaked under his jacket around his torso and squeezed him tightly. She never wanted to let go.

After a moment, he pulled away slightly, his hands positioned firmly on her waist. Natalie looked up at him and smiled softly. Throwing her arms around his neck, she leaned up and brought his lips to hers. In that moment, everything that had happened was gone. All that mattered was the two of them right there in that moment.

He eagerly returned the kiss, his hands travelling to the back of her thighs to lift her up. She wrapped her legs around his torso and held tightly onto his neck. He moved her against the wall, pressing his body against her, deepening the kiss. The kiss was almost desperate but it was filled with intimacy and passion. Natalie parted her lips and his tongue entered her mouth. She felt a spark run through her, carding her fingers through his hair, pulling him closer.

He gently put her down on the ground, his hands travelling up her back, his lips never leaving hers. Finally, she pulled away, gasping for air. He rested her forehead on hers and sighed, “I’m so sorry, Natalie. For everything.”

“I forgive you,” she smiled, pressing a kiss on his lips. “But don’t ever do that again,” she said sternly before letting out a laugh.

“I promise,” he chuckled, his hands cupping her face and he connected their lips again. “I love you, Natalie Caves,” he whispered against her lips, his hand stroking her hair.

“I love you too, Sweet Pea.”

 

 

 


End file.
